Matilda Wets the Bed
by aspiring writer from Maryland
Summary: This picks up 3 weeks after Matilda's parents leave her in Miss Honey's care. I've always loved the relationship between Matilda and Miss Honey and thought that it would be a very unique experience adopting a child like Matilda. Matilda is a survivor of childhood trauma and she seems remarkably well adjusted despite the abandonment and verbal and emotional abuse she experienced.
1. Chapter 1

Jennifer Honey opened her eyes, taking in the pitch blackness of her bedroom. She rolled over and looked at the alarm clock on her bedside table. _2:38 AM._ Normally she was a sound sleeper, and it was unusual for her to have woken in the middle of the night like this. Then she heard an undistinguishable noise from down the hall where Matilda's room was. Matilda! Jenny turned on her bedside lamp, grabbed her robe from the hook on the back of her bedroom door, and stepped out into the hallway. Sure enough, there was a sliver of light under Matilda's closed bedroom door. What on earth could Matilda be doing awake at this time of night! Jenny padded down the hallway and knocked softly on Matilda's door before pushing it open gently. "Matilda?" she said softly. "Are you alright?"

Jenny was not expecting the scene that greeted her. She saw Matilda's bedsheets bundled into a pile on the middle of the bedroom floor, and Matilda, her light brown hair toussled from sleep, soundlessly closing the dresser drawer that contained her nightgowns. Matilda jumped when she heard Jenny, a nightgown and a pair of underwear clutched in her tiny hands. "Miss Honey!" she exclaimed nervously. "I- I'm so sorry I woke you. Everything's okay, you can go back to sleep!"

Jenny noticed a large wet spot on Matilda's pink and blue striped nightgown and immediately knew what had happened. "Matilda," she said gently, walking over to her newly adopted daughter and kneeling down to her level. "Did you wet the bed?"

Matilda's eyes filled with tears that threatened to spill. "I'm so sorry, Miss Honey. This doesn't usually happen. I- it's just this one time, I promise. Please don't be mad! It won't happen again!"

"Matilda," whispered Jenny, gently stroking the child's hair. "It's just a little accident, it's not a big deal. Why on earth would I be mad at you, sweetheart?"

"I- I didn't mean to make a mess. I- I'll clean it up!" Matilda stammered.

"Matilda," said Jenny, taking both of the child's hands in hers. "You're not even seven years old yet, and you've just been through some very big changes in your life," Jenny reminded her, referring to the fact that only three short weeks ago Matilda's birth family had abruptly moved out of the country and abandoned her, leaving her in Jenny's care. "It is so common for children your age to wet the bed once in a while, and especially given all that you've been through. And I certainly don't expect you to clean this up yourself."

Jenny studied Matilda's downcast eyes and defeated expression. It was so unlike Matilda, who was typically so precociously self-assured and rational, to overreact like this. Then Jenny had a thought. "Matilda," she said slowly. "Has this ever happened before? At your old house?"

Matilda nodded, eyes still downcast. Now they were getting somewhere. "Can you tell me what happened?" Jenny asked gently.

Matilda sighed, and reluctantly began to speak. "I was four," she started. "I had been out of diapers for a long time and I'd never had an accident before, but one night I had a nightmare and I woke up and I'd wet the bed. I wasn't sure what to do and I knew I couldn't reach the clean sheets from the top shelf in the closet, so I went and got my mom. I never should have done that," she said, her voice trembling. "She yelled at me and said that I was disgusting and that only babies wet the bed. Then she said to clean it up and to never bother her with something like that again."

Jenny was horrified. She could not even fathom treating Matilda the way Zinnia Wormwood had treated her own daughter. "I only had a few more accidents after that, Matilda continued, "but I always made sure to just clean it up quietly myself without anyone finding out."

"Oh Matilda," breathed Jenny, stroking Matilda's cheek. "No child should ever be treated like that." _If I had been your mother back then I would have reassured you and comforted you and helped you_ , thought Jenny fiercely.

"That's not even the worst part," said Matilda glumly.

"What happened next, sweetheart?" asked Jenny, both scared to know just how horribly this poor child had been treated in the past, but also desperate to know so that she could better understand and help her.

"Then," Matilda continued, "my dad came storming in to see what all the yelling was about. When my mom told him what I'd done, he grabbed me by the back of my neck and shoved my face into the pee on the bed, and then he lifted up my nightshirt and spanked me. Hard." Matilda took a deep, ragged breath. "And he told me what a bad girl I was. When my mom was walking out of my room, she said to him, 'Matilda was such a MISTAKE. I should have just had an abortion when I had the chance.' I didn't know what that word meant- abortion- so I had to look it up at the library the next day." Matilda shuddered, as if physically trying to dislodge the memory of whatever results her research had shown her.

Jenny felt her blood turn to ice in her veins. She inhaled sharply and met Matilda's gaze. "Oh Matilda, how awful! I'm so sorry you had to hear that and experience that. That is so terribly cruel and, quite frankly, _insane_. You were just a little girl. You still are." Jenny could not imagine, in a million years, abusing and lashing out at a four year old child the way the Wormwoods had. A four year old child they were supposed to love and protect and take care of. A four year old child who had come to them for _help_. No wonder Matilda had been so scared and upset about what Jenny's reaction would be to her wetting the bed.

Suddenly, the tears in Matilda's eyes that had been threatening to spill let loose. Jenny pulled Matilda towards her in a loving embrace as the small girl sobbed into the crook of Jenny's neck. Jenny gently placed Matilda onto her lap and held her as the child continued to sob, letting out all of the hurt that she had been holding inside of her for so long. Jenny stroked her hair and whispered soft reassurances. "Shh, it's okay. It'll be okay. You're safe, and I love you and I want you. I want you so very much and I'm so happy that you're my little girl now." Jenny felt her own nightgown grow damp from Matilda's urine soaked nightgown, but that was her last concern. Her first priority, for as long as she lived, was going to be to protect Matilda and to make sure that she felt loved and safe and appreciated and wanted. It was the very least she could do after everything Matilda had done for her.

As Matilda's tears finally subsided into soft hiccups, Jenny felt the exhausted child's head rest on her shoulder. The little girl was so worn out from her cry that her body had gone completely limp in Jenny's arms. "Matilda, sweetheart," whispered Jenny. "Let's go get you cleaned up and into something dry, and then get you back into bed." Jenny gently picked Matilda up and felt Matilda's little legs wrap around her waist and her arms curl around her neck. Jenny felt her heart swell with a maternal love so fierce that it almost took her breath away. Jenny had always wanted to be a mother, but never thought motherhood was something that would actually happen for her. She had been under her Aunt Trunchbull's control for so long, living in poverty and having her self esteem gradually chipped away as the years went on until there was practically nothing left. Eventually Jenny was left with such little confidence in herself that dating seemed out of the question. And until Matilda- wonderful Matilda- had come along and helped to banish Aunt Trunchbull and regain Jenny's home and rightful inheritance, raising a child as a single woman, on her pittance of a salary, had seemed out of the question. Jenny had felt such a special connection with Matilda from the very first day she walked into her classroom, before Jenny had any inkling at all of what Matilda's home life was like. She never could have dreamed back then that Matilda would eventually end up being her daughter. Matilda truly was a miracle to Jenny.

Jenny carried Matilda down the hall to the bathroom and gently set her down. Matilda was still clutching the nightgown and underwear that she had selected from her dresser. Jenny took them out of Matilda's hands and placed them on the floor. "Here, let's get you out of this wet nightgown." Matilda hesitated for only a brief moment before lifting her arms up in the air, allowing Jenny to pull the wet nightgown over her head. Jenny then pulled down Matilda's soaking wet underwear as the child resignedly stepped out of them. As Matilda stood before her, naked, looking so heartbreakingly little and vulnerable, it occurred to Jenny that this was the first time she had seen her new daughter naked. Not that seeing Matilda naked was something she had been anticipating, of course. It was just something that popped into Jenny's head, that most parents get to raise their children from birth, changing them and feeding them and bathing them. And even then, typically children as young as Matilda still need some help in the bath or with taking care of themselves. Matilda, however, had come into Jenny's life as a fully self-sufficient six year old. Jenny felt her face burn with anger as she thought of the reason _why_ Matilda was so self-sufficient at such a young age. Matilda's parents were so neglectful and unloving towards Matilda that the child didn't have a choice _but_ to learn to take care of herself. Jenny imagined that at some point Zinna Wormwood had to have changed baby Matilda's diapers (she couldn't imagine Harry Wormwood involving himself with ANYTHING regarding caring for his daughter) and bathed her, but she didn't imagine it was done with the frequency nor the love and care that Matilda needed and deserved. Jenny's only regret was that she had not come into Matilda's life sooner, sparing Matilda so many years of growing up feeling unwanted and unloved and constantly being told what a burden she was.

Jenny, who had experienced a traumatic childhood of her own, was able to understand Matilda in a way that no one else in the young girl's life had ever even come close to. Matilda, likewise, understood Jenny wholly and completely. Both of them knew exactly what it was like to be so little and to feel so very alone in a big world, turning to books as an escape. The two of them had quickly formed a very strong emotional bond. But, unlike Jenny, Matilda seemed remarkably untouched by the trauma she had experienced in her young life. Despite facing daily verbal and emotional abuse and then complete and total abandonment by her family, Matilda was so brave, and strong and resilient. Sometimes Jenny had to stop and remind herself that Matilda was not a miniature adult, but a little girl who just happened to be wise and mature beyond her years.

Jenny reached over and removed a pink washcloth from the towel bar on the wall, and ran the tap until warm water began to flow. She wetted the washcloth with warm water and began gently and lovingly wiping down Matilda's legs, which were coated in dried urine. Normally this was something that Matilda could have easily done for herself, but as it was 3 AM and Matilda had cried herself into sheer exhaustion, Jenny knew that right now Matilda was not the self-sufficient genius who had been bathing herself since the age of two, but a six year old little girl who needed to be loved and taken care of.

"Matilda," Jenny said gently as she wiped the child's legs. "If this ever happens again, I want you to walk down the hall and come get me, okay?" Matilda nodded unsurely. "Sweetheart," Jenny continued, making eye contact with Matilda. "I promise that I will never, _ever_ , yell at you or hurt you or humiliate you. You can always come to me if you need help." Matilda nodded again with slightly more confidence.

Jenny moved the washcloth higher up Matilda's legs until she was gently wiping Matilda's vagina and bottom. Jenny felt Matilda stiffen. She looked up and saw that Matilda's cheeks had turned pink and that she had turned her head away. It occurred to Jenny that since Matilda had been taking care of herself for so long, she probably had no memory at all of anyone taking care of her or touching her, let alone in such an intimate place on her body.

"Oh Matilda," Jenny said with understanding, her heart swelling with empathy for the little girl. "There's no need to feel embarrassed. It's just me. I'm your mother now and I love you and I want to take care of you the way you deserve. Okay?" Jenny smiled reassuringly at the little girl. Matilda nodded back. Jenny finished tenderly wiping the folds of skin between Matilda's legs and then retrieved the clean underwear, holding them out for Matilda to step into. An exhausted Matilda, barely able to keep her eyes open, stepped into the leg holes and stood patiently as Jenny pulled them up. She then lifted her arms so that Jenny could slip on her clean, dry nightgown. Jenny picked her up and kissed her cheek. "Let's get you back to bed, sweetheart."

"What about the sheets?" Matilda asked, rubbing her eyes. "They're all wet and on the floor, and I didn't put new ones on yet."

"I'll tell you what," said Jenny. "Tonight you can sleep with me in my bed. We'll take care of the sheets tomorrow." Matilda nodded, the first hint of a small smile creeping onto her face.

Jenny carried the little girl down the hall and tucked her into bed. She then crawled into her side of the bed and reached over to turn off the light. _3:12 AM_ , she thought, glancing at the clock. _Thank goodness today is Saturday and we can sleep in._

"Try to get some sleep now," Jenny whispered, gently stroking Matilda's soft brown hair.

"Mmm," sighed Matilda, already halfway asleep. "I'm so glad you're my mommy."

Tears formed in Jenny's eyes as she lay there in the dark, listening to her daughter's deep, even breathing. It was the first time Matilda had referred to her as _mommy_. She liked the sound of that.

"Me too, Matilda," she whispered. "I love you so much."


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: This was originally just intended to be a short story but I had so much fun writing it I decided to expand it.

The next morning Jenny woke up and stretched lazily as she glanced at the clock on her night table. 9:15 am! Jenny could not remember ever having slept that late before. She looked over at Matilda, still asleep with her arms above her head like goalposts, and smiled. _My daughter_ , she thought happily. _I have the most wonderful daughter in the world._ Jenny got up to use the restroom, and as she quietly tiptoed back to her side of the bed, she saw Matilda start to stir. "Good morning honey," Jenny whispered, stroking Matilda's hair affectionately. "How did you sleep?"

Matilda yawned. "Really well. And… sorry again about last night. Thank you for being so understanding."

"Matilda, sweetheart," said Jenny, opening her arms for Matilda to climb into. Matilda scooted over eagerly and melted into her mother's arms, resting her head on Jenny's shoulder. "You don't need to keep apologizing. Please talk to me and tell me what's on your mind so that I can know how to make you feel better."

"I guess…" started Matilda. "I guess I was just scared."

"What were you scared of, honey? I really want to understand."

Matilda sighed. "The past three weeks have been… the best of my life and the happiest I've ever been. I've never felt loved or wanted before and it feels like a dream come true that you adopted me. I was just scared that I had gone and messed it up. Like maybe you'd decide I was too much trouble and change your mind about wanting me."

Jenny's heart broke for Matilda. "Matilda," she said, pulling the child in even closer to her and kissing her forehead. "You say the past three weeks have been the best of _your_ life, but what you aren't taking into account is that the past three weeks have been the best of _my_ life. Everything good in my life that I have is because of you. I was very lonely before you came along. Adopting you and becoming your mother, and having the privilege of being the person who gets to take care of you and protect you and love you, it's filled me with more happiness and more of a sense of purpose than I ever thought I could have. I wouldn't trade this for the world. As a matter of fact, you could wet the bed every night and it wouldn't change how much I love you and how much I love being your mom. Okay?"

Matilda nodded, wrapping her arms around Jenny tightly. "I love you too."

"Matilda, is there anything that I can do to reassure you about things? Please tell me if there is."

Well," said Matilda. "My parents never told me that they loved me, or that they were proud of me. They never really said anything to me at all except to call me stupid or to yell at me to leave them alone. When you tell me you love me, and that you want me, and that you're proud of me, it makes me feel so good about myself. I think I already know deep down that you feel that way about me, but it just really helps to hear it."

Jenny smiled. "I'll tell you what, Matilda. From now on, I'm going to tell you I love you so much that you're going to get sick of hearing it and you'll beg me to stop!"

Matilda giggled. "No way! Not possible!"

The two fell into a comfortable silence as they cuddled in Jenny's big comfortable bed. "Matilda, what would you like to do today?" asked Jenny after several minutes. "We have a whole Saturday ahead of us with nothing scheduled."

Matilda looked out the window and took in the grey skies and steadily falling rain. "Can we make pancakes for breakfast and then cuddle in bed and read?"

"That sounds like an amazing way to spend a rainy Saturday morning!" exclaimed Jenny. "What book did you have in mind?"

"I borrowed _To Kill a Mockingbird_ from the library," replied Matilda.

"Oh Matilda, I don't know," said Jenny hesitantly. "While _To Kill a Mockingbird_ is certainly a magnificent piece of literature, I think some of the subject matter is a little too adult for you." Jenny did not want her six year old daughter to read about rape, even if it wasn't described in explicit detail.

One of the unique challenges of raising a child of Matilda's off-the-charts intelligence was keeping her intellectually stimulated while also keeping her in age-appropriate material. It was a very fine balance Jenny was still trying to learn how to strike. While Matilda's intellectual development was at an adult level, in every other way she was still an innocent six year old little girl who loved to have fun and play with her friends. After Miss Trunchbull left Crunchem Hall, Jenny created a specially structured schedule for Matilda. She moved her to a sixth grade class for math, science, reading, and social studies, but made sure that Matilda still had lunch, recess, music, and art classes with her friends her own age. While Jenny certainly placed utmost importance on providing academic curriculum that would keep Matilda engaged and challenged, it was almost an even higher priority to her that Matilda's emotional and social development remain on track with children her own age. Jenny wanted her daughter to have as happy and normal of a childhood as possible. Thus far, Matilda seemed to be flourishing with her new schedule, and was thrilled to have time built into her day to play with Lavender, Amanda, Nigel, and all her old friends.

When Matilda started to protest, Jenny stopped her and said "Sweetheart, I love that you want to challenge yourself and I support that completely, but you will just have to trust me that the subject matter in this book is not appropriate for your age." When she saw Matilda's disappointed expression, she smiled and said, "Anyway, I have something I think you'll like even better." Jenny gently extricated herself from Matilda's arms and padded across the plush carpet over to her closet. She rummaged around for a minute or two until she emerged with what she had been looking for.

" _Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone_!" exclaimed Matilda. "I've heard about Harry Potter but I haven't read it yet!"

"I think you will love it! Did you know that Harry is raised by an aunt and uncle and cousin who treat him very poorly? And, like you, he has magical abilities that ultimately end up helping him escape his situation and find a better life with people who love him and appreciate him. I think you'll really relate to him."

Matilda's eyes lit up. Pancakes forgotten, she curled up against Jenny and opened the book to chapter one.

Jenny and Matilda cuddled and read until they could no longer ignore their growling stomachs. Jenny glanced at her bedside table. 11:38. "Matilda," she smiled, placing a kiss on Matilda's forehead. What do you think about pancakes for lunch?"

Matilda smiled that big gap toothed grin that Jenny adored. "Yes, please!"

As they sat at the kitchen table contentedly chowing down on their pancakes, Jenny posed a question to Matilda. "Matilda," she began. "I had something I wanted to ask you." Matilda looked up curiously and met Jenny's gaze. "What's up, mom?" she asked.

"Well, started Jenny, breaking into a smile upon hearing Matilda call her _mom_. "I know that your parents never provided you with any lessons or extracurricular activities of any sort, and I was curious if there was anything you wanted to try out. A sport, or an instrument perhaps?"

Matilda furrowed her brows and pursed her lips together in the adorable way that she always did when she was deep in thought. She only had to think for a few short moments before she shyly offered, "Well, I've thought for a long time that it would be really cool to do gymnastics."

"Gymnastics!" exclaimed Miss Honey. "I had no idea that was an interest of yours!"

"Well I read a book about it in the library and I've always admired the blend of strength and grace and flexibility it requires, not to mention the mental concentration," started Matilda. "Plus Amanda Thripp takes gymnastics and whenever she talks about it it sounds so fun."

"I'll tell you what," said Jenny. "I'll give Amanda's mother a call this afternoon and get some information about the gym Amanda goes to. Then I'll see what I need to do to get you registered in a beginner's class."

"Thank you thank you thank you!" exclaimed Matilda, leaping out of her seat and wrapping her arms around Jenny.

Jenny chuckled at her daughter's enthusiasm. Matilda was always full of surprises! Jenny had expected that Matilda would request something more cerebral, like piano or violin lessons, but Jenny was excited by the idea of Matilda trying a sport. She spent so much time reading and studying, which of course Jenny was thrilled about, but perhaps a sport like gymnastics would really help Matilda to be more well-rounded in her activities.

"Mom?" Matilda asked.

"Yes, dear?"

"I have a question for you too. I've been wanting to ask you for a long time but I wasn't exactly sure if I should. I don't want to upset you, but... I was just wondering… when you were a little girl. You said that the Trunchbull hurt you. What, exactly, did she do?"

Jenny inhaled sharply. "Matilda, why are you asking?"

"Mom, you know how you always say that you want to understand what I've been through so that you can help me better?" Jenny nodded. "Well," continued Matilda, "I feel the same way about you."

"Matilda," she said, meeting the little girl's inquisitive dark blue eyes. "Just like with _To Kill a Mockingbird_ , you are going to have to trust me when I tell you that you're too young to hear of such things. My childhood was very unhappy, and it's my goal to make sure that your childhood is the exact opposite. It's just too disturbing to discuss. And I appreciate how much you love me and care about me, I appreciate it more than you'll ever know. But sweetheart, it's not your job to take care of me. I'm the grownup and it's my job to take care of you and protect you."

"Please, mom? I just want to know."

"No, Matilda. I'm sorry but the answer is no and that's final."

As Matilda looked away and took another bite of her pancakes, Jenny watched her and thought to herself, _NEVER. Never will your head be filled with the horrors of my childhood. The horrors of what she did to me. What she made me do. Never_.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's note: This chapter contains some sexual content.

Jenny got off the phone with Jean Thripp feeling confident about enrolling Matilda at GymStars. Jenny had had a long list of questions to ask Amanda's mother. Of course she had questions about the cost and things of that nature, but the majority of her questions revolved around safety. Matilda's safety was the most important thing. Were the coaches competent and experienced? Was there adequate supervision? Did the instructors undergo background investigations? Jenny imagined that with gymnastics there would be instructors giving hands-on corrections and spotting, and she wanted to make sure that anyone who would be touching her little girl was safe. Jean Thripp assured Jenny that all of the coaches were wonderful and had undergone background investigations. Most of them were former elite and collegiate gymnasts. She also reassured Jenny that there was a comfortable viewing room for any parent who wanted to sit and observe, which Jenny found very reassuring.

As Jenny hung up the phone, she glanced over at Matilda and smiled. Matilda, who was curled up in the big bay window with a book, appeared to be fully engrossed in the adventures of Harry, Ron, and Hermione, but Jenny knew she was listening keenly to Jenny's end of the phone conversation. Jenny walked over and sat down next to her daughter. "Good news, Matilda," she said with a smile. "Amanda's mom had nothing but wonderful things to say about Amanda's gym. I'm going to call over there now and see what I can do about getting us in for a tour and getting you signed up."

Matilda broke out into a huge toothy grin and threw her arms around Jenny's neck. "You're the best mommy in the whole world! Thank you!"

Jenny brushed Matilda's bangs off her forehead and gave her forehead a kiss. "I love seeing you so happy and excited, sweetheart. I've got to say, I'm really marveling at the fact that just a few months ago I was a single schoolteacher living in a rundown cottage and barely scraping by, and now not only am I a school principal living in a big, beautiful house, but I'm a mother to the most wonderful little girl and I'm about to be a ' _gymnastics mom_ '! It's amazing how much life can change on a dime."

"Still single, though," Jenny added with the shrug of her shoulders.

"Do you ever think about dating, Mom?" asked Matilda with an earnest expression on her face.

Jenny sighed. "Honestly, Matilda, my life feels so perfect and content just the way things are right now. Maybe someday, but I'm still getting used to my newfound freedom and getting to do the things that most women my age have been doing for years."

Jenny knew that most 30 year old women were much more experienced with men than she was. When Jenny was a teenager, most girls her age were getting their first kiss and testing the waters with fooling around with boys. Jenny, however, lived in constant fear of her aunt. If she did not come home straight from school and account for her whereabouts every minute of the day, her aunt would punish her. Making any kind of social plans over the weekend was out of the question. Jenny would be expected to be at home, cleaning and cooking. Jenny had never dared to even think about stepping a toe out of line because her aunt's punishments were so… humiliating. So awful. Jenny hated to think about it. Jenny was too embarrassed to admit to anyone that not only was she a virgin, but she had never even kissed a boy. A man. Up until two months ago when Matilda saved her from the life of servitude she had been stuck in since the age of five, Jenny hadn't even had the chance. She had no idea at all what to do! It was embarrassing to admit that she was just about as clueless as her 6 year old daughter when it came to relations with the opposite sex.

 _Of course she had masturbated_ , Jenny thought to herself, feeling her face flush. _The thought of feeling the thickness and the pressure of a man between her legs pushing himself inside of her instead of just her own fingers was so… so…_

"Mom? Earth to mom!" giggled Matilda, shaking Jenny's arm. "Are you okay? You looked like you were a million miles away just now!"

Jenny cleared her throat. "Oh my! I just got lost in thought there. Why don't you go on upstairs and take your shower while I call the gym? If we're lucky, maybe we can swing by this afternoon."

"Okay!" agreed Matilda cheerfully, carefully marking her place in her book before setting it aside. Jenny watched her bounce happily up the stairs. _What a wonderful, agreeable child_ , she thought to herself with a smile. _How did I get so lucky?_

Jenny Googled the phone number for GymStars and pressed call. A cheerful voice answered, "GymStars, this is Pam!"

"Hi, Pam," started Jenny. "My name is Jennifer Honey and I'm interested in enrolling my 6 year old, soon-to-be 7 year old daughter, in a beginner's class."

"Great!" replied Pam. "Well as the school year is winding down, the current sessions will be wrapping up soon and we've got our summer sessions starting in about three weeks. As luck would have it, we just had a cancellation and have one slot left in our Level 1 class that meets Mondays and Wednesdays at 4:30PM. Would that work for you?"

"That sounds perfect," said Jenny.

"Wonderful!" said Pam. "I will warn you that classes fill up fast, so I would recommend that if you're ready to move forward with enrolling, to do it ASAP. If you're available, you can bring your daughter over any time this afternoon. I'm the membership coordinator here, so I'd be happy to give you a tour and go over all of the paperwork with you and answer any questions you may have."

Jenny assured Pam that they would be there in about an hour and hung up.

Jenny went upstairs to start getting ready. As she reached the top of the stairwell, the bathroom door opened and a stark naked Matilda emerged in a cloud of steam. "Matilda!" Jenny exclaimed. "Where's your towel, sweetheart?"

"I forgot it in my room!" called out Matilda as she streaked down the hall, leaving a trail of small wet footprints. Jenny chuckled. Even though Matilda's wetting the bed the night before had embarrassed the little girl, Jenny felt that in an odd way the incident had been an essential bonding moment for the both of them. Matilda had always been more than just one of her students to Jenny, and in the three weeks since Matilda had become Jenny's daughter, the two of them had lived blissfully, almost as if in a fairy tale. But Jenny felt that behind all the levity, Matilda had a wall up that Jenny hadn't quite managed to break through. Based on what Matilda had said last night, Jenny knew that Matilda was afraid that it was all too good to be true and that Jenny would get bored of her or change her mind about wanting her. Jenny had a feeling that Matilda was trying to be on her best behavior and to be the perfect daughter, when all she wanted was for the little girl to be herself and feel at home. Jenny thought that the previous night, when she had gotten to hold Matilda and comfort her, and see her at her most vulnerable and help clean her, that maybe Matilda finally understood that Jenny was in this forever and that she wasn't going to abandon her. Whereas up until last night Matilda had still been calling Jenny _Miss Honey_ , she was now saying _mom_ and _mommy_ with ease. Something had shifted since last night and Matilda just seemed so much more relaxed and comfortable today, which thrilled Jenny. 24 hours ago, Matilda would have been mortified for Jenny to have seen her without her clothes on. Now she seemed just like any normal, happy 6 year old in the presence of her mom.

Jenny opened her closet to select an outfit for the day. It appeared that the rain had stopped for the remainder of the day and that it was actually shaping up to be a beautiful and sunny mid-May afternoon. Jenny selected a pair of khaki pants, nude ballet flats, and a pale pink and yellow floral print blouse. She laid the outfit out on her bed and then stripped out of her pajamas. She stripped off her clothes, pulled on her bathrobe, and made her way down the hall to the bathroom.

As the hot water washed over her, Jenny ran the soapy washcloth over her skin. Once she was clean, Jenny continued to stand under the cascade of hot water, letting her mind wander back to where it left off earlier. She cupped her hands over her small, perky breasts and massaged them. She wondered what it would feel like to have a man's hands on her breasts. The thought of it gave her an excited, tingly feeling. She traced her fingers over her nipples, feeling them harden. As her breath quickened, she let one of her hands trail down her stomach, past the neatly groomed thatch of hair, letting her fingers trace the pink folds of skin between her legs. She explored the opening, allowing two of her fingers to slip inside. A moan escaped her lips. She moved her fingers inside her, slow at first, then gradually picking up speed. Jenny could feel her vagina swell and throb with desire as she imagined a man inside of her, thrusting himself in and out… in and out… _Oh god, it felt so good._ Jenny braced her left hand against the shower wall as she fingered herself faster and faster. She felt the tingly sensation continue to build until she felt the intense burst of an orgasm. Jenny had to bite her lip from crying out as her body quivered. It lasted for several long, satisfying seconds until it began to subside.

Jenny knew it was perfectly normal for a woman her age, in her sexual prime, to masturbate and have fantasies. Still, Jenny felt like a naughty teenager for what she had just done and giggled. She turned off the shower and dried herself off. As she made her way back down the hall towards her room, she peeked into Matilda's room and saw that her daughter had dressed herself in her favorite dress- pale blue and white seersucker with small red strawberries embroidered throughout. She had just tied her signature red ribbon in her hair and was combing her straight brown bangs neatly over her forehead. She looked adorable.

Jenny closed her bedroom door behind her and got dressed. She called the cab company, requesting pickup in ten minutes. One of the many things that made Jenny feel very behind other people her age was that she didn't have a driver's license. One of the first things she had done after her Aunt Trunchbull had disappeared back in early April was go to and obtain her learner's permit. One of the other teachers at the school, Alison Casey, who was about Jenny's age, volunteered to take Jenny out in her car twice a week after school for Jenny to practice. One of the many added bonuses to Agatha Trunchbull's absence was that the teachers had become more social with each other, finally having the freedom to enjoy their workplace. Jenny had really enjoyed the time she spent with Alison, and the two were becoming good friends. On the days that Jenny had her driving lessons with Alison, Matilda would walk home with Hortensia, an older girl who lived just three blocks over. Hortensia would stay with Matilda and they would play games or do their homework together. Jenny knew that Matilda was perfectly capable of minding herself for an hour and a half while Jenny wasn't home, but it wasn't legal to leave a 6 year old home alone and Jenny wanted someone home with her just in case. On the days that Jenny didn't have her driving lessons, she and Matilda would walk home from school together.

Jenny could not wait to get her driver's license and buy a car. It would be so nice to have the freedom to take Matilda more places, not to mention being able to drive to school on rainy days. For the time being, she and Matilda were getting along just fine without, but it was a matter of pride for Jenny and she felt embarrassed by being a 30 year old woman without a driver's license or a car.

One thing at a time, thought Jenny, as she made her way downstairs to wait with Matilda for the cab.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's note: Trigger warning, this chapter contains descriptions of sexual abuse suffered by Jenny as a child that may be disturbing for some

As Jenny and Matilda sat on a bench under the shady tree out front, with Matilda snuggled up against her, Jenny felt that life had never been better for her. Jenny's mind began to drift to a time when life had never been worse for her. " _What exactly did the Trunchbull do to you?_ " Matilda's words echoed in Jenny's mind. As Jenny's thoughts continued further down the rabbit hole, she was suddenly no longer an adult woman sitting on a bench with her daughter, but was a naked five year old in a bathtub.

 _Jenny sat in the tub, running the soapy washcloth over her skin, shivering in spite of the hot water encasing her small body. She could feel her aunt's eyes on her. Aunt Trunchbull always insisted Jenny keep the bathroom door open when she bathed, and would just stand there at the door, staring at her. It was so uncomfortable. Bath time was terrifying for Jenny. If her aunt thought she had missed a spot or not washed thoroughly enough, she would grab Jenny by the back of her neck and force her head under the water. The first several times it happened Jenny would scream in terror, choking on the bathwater and clawing at the sides of the tub in panicked desperation. Jenny, however, came to realize two things. First, screaming would cause her to swallow and inhale more water. Secondly, seeing Jenny's terror made her aunt… gleeful. Her Aunt Trunchbull enjoyed seeing her suffer. At only five, Jenny learned that, while she was completely at the mercy of her cruel aunt, the one thing she could try to control was her reaction to the abuse. Jenny always tried her best to remain stoic and not give her aunt the satisfaction of seeing her pain or fear. Of course, some times that was easier than others. When she saw her aunt coming for her, right before her big meaty hand would clamp over the back of Jenny's neck, Jenny would inhale as much air as her five year old lungs could hold, pinch her nose shut, and pray that her aunt relinquished her grip on the back of her neck before she ran out of air._

 _Jenny always had to come straight home from school. There was cooking, and cleaning, and laundry to do. Jenny tried her hardest to obey her aunt's orders and not give her any reason to punish her, but if there was one thing about Agatha Trunchbull it was that she thrived on punishing Jenny. She would always come up with something, no matter how neatly Jenny folded the laundry, or how perfectly she prepared dinner. The perfectly baked garlic bread was "burnt", or the neatly folded towels "looked lumpy." Jenny learned early on that she could never win and that it was pointless to think she could. Around the time that Jenny turned nine, her aunt's punishments took on a new sick and twisted form._

 _Jenny had come home from school and taken the trash out. She grabbed a new trash bag to line the can with, but then glanced over and realized she hadn't yet preheated the oven for her aunt's dinner. She set the trash bag down on the table and raced across the kitchen to the oven, setting it to 350. Then, thoughts of preparing her aunt's dinner distracted her as she began bustling around the kitchen, gathering the ingredients and utensils she would need. Jenny was so absorbed in meal preparations that she hadn't heard her aunt sneak up behind her. "What is THIS?" hissed her aunt dangerously, her hot, fetid breath on the back of Jenny's neck. Jenny felt a shiver ripple down her spine. She turned around and saw that her aunt was holding the trash bag that she had not yet lined the can with. "I- I'm s-sorry Aunt Trunchbull," Jenny stammered. I was getting your dinner ready and-"_

 _"Take off your clothes," her aunt hissed in a near whisper. As terrifying as it was to be yelled at by her aunt, it was even more terrifying when she spoke like this. Jenny knew something awful was about to happen._

 _"My- my clothes?" asked Jenny with confusion. "Now? I don't understand, it's not bath time yet, and I-"_

 _"TAKE OFF YOUR CLOTHES!" bellowed her aunt, spittle flying from the corners of her mouth. "You, Jennifer Honey, are a slovenly, lazy, nasty child and haven't earned the right to wear clothing in my house tonight. Take them off right this instant or I'll give you something to be sorry about!"_

 _Jenny, quivering with fear, her face burning with humiliation, unbuttoned her dress with trembling hands and stepped out of it. Jenny stood before her aunt, her frail, malnourished body clad only in a pair of plain white cotton panties, shivering._

 _"And your underwear too," said her aunt with an evil glint in her eye._

 _As Jenny slid her underwear down to the kitchen floor and stepped out of them, tears pricked the corners of her eyes. She took a deep breath and steeled herself. She would not let her aunt see her cry. Her aunt stood before her, her eyes running up and down Jenny's naked, trembling body. "Finish making my dinner!" ordered her aunt. Humiliated, Jenny resumed preparing her aunt's dinner. Stark naked. Jenny had never felt lower in her entire life. Her aunt only allowed her one meal a day, and on school days Jenny always chose lunch so that she could fit in with the rest of her classmates. Today had been a school day, which meant that Jenny was preparing a meal that she would not even get the chance to eat. Oh but her aunt would make her sit at the other end of the dining table and watch her eat. She knew it was torture for Jenny, whose stomach oftentimes audibly growled so loudly her aunt could hear it from across the long table. And she would smile every time she did. Tonight was even worse, because not only was she expected to sit, starving, watching her aunt consume a large hearty meal that she had prepared, but she had to do it naked._

 _As time went on, Jenny's aunt found more and more occasions to punish her by denying her the right to wear clothes at home. Jenny thought that it couldn't get any more humiliating than it already was. That is, until Jenny's body began to change. Jenny was 13, and was on her hands and knees, naked, scrubbing the kitchen floor. Her aunt sat at the kitchen table, devouring a grotesquely large piece of chocolate cake, watching her. Jenny was no longer a young child but, due to malnourishment, was behind the rest of her peers developmentally. Most girls by now had been getting their periods for at least a year or two and were wearing bras. It was just within the past few weeks that Jenny had noticed small, barely-there breasts beginning to bud on her chest. Much to her horror, she had also discovered a few fine brown hairs beginning to grow "down there". She was self-conscious enough about these changes in her body, but lived in fear of what her aunt would do when she noticed. Then, one day, Jenny was setting her aunt's dinner down on the table in front of her, naked of course due to one of her many perceived indiscretions, when her aunt suddenly began laughing. Jenny always knew that something cruel was about to happen when her aunt laughed. "Well look at that!" exclaimed her aunt. "Look at what?" asked Jenny fearfully, her eyes at her feet. "THIS!" exclaimed her aunt gleefully as she roughly pinched one of Jenny's tiny, budding breasts. Jenny could not control her response and yelped in pain and humiliation. "Little Jenny's finally getting some tits!"_

 _Jenny's face burned. She remained silent as she stared at her feet in complete disgust and horror._

 _"Any other fun new surprises I should know about?" cackled her aunt. Her aunt suddenly bent over at the waist, her face mere inches away from Jenny's privates, inspecting them. Jenny felt her aunt's hot breath on her privates and felt like she was going to throw up. "Well look at that!" she exclaimed. "Little Jenny is becoming a woman." She reached her large, calloused hand towards Jenny's privates and, before Jenny even knew what was happening, her aunt had plucked one of Jenny's new pubic hairs and held up the small brown hair between her thumb and pointer finger, holding it in the air like a trophy. Her aunt cackled like a madwoman while Jenny tried to swallow down the bile that was rising in her throat._

 _Less than a week after that horrible evening, Jenny got her first period._

 _It was dinnertime and, like so many nights, Jenny was sitting naked at the dining table watching her aunt consume a meal she had prepared, while her own stomach growled with hunger. Her stomach felt extra achey today, which only made the hunger pains more excruciating. When her aunt was finished, Jenny got up to clear her plates. She happened to look down at the seat cushion and gasped. There, on the ivory upholstery, was a red stain. Now that she was standing up, Jenny could feel the wetness between her legs. Jenny panicked. How was she going to hide this from her aunt? What was she going to do? She could push the chair in and hope her aunt wouldn't notice, and then sneak down in the middle of the night once her aunt had gone to bed and try to clean the stain._

 _"What are you looking at, Jenny?" her aunt asked accusingly, snapping Jenny out of her thoughts. What could possibly be so important that you are delaying clearing my plates?"_

 _"Um… sorry… I, um…" Jenny stammered._

 _"What are you looking at?" her aunt repeated more loudly._

 _When Jenny couldn't find the words to formulate a response, her aunt stood up rapidly, her chair clattering backwards onto the floor. She paced across the room angrily and looked down at the seat cushion._

 _"WHAT did you do to my dining room chair, Jennifer Honey?" hissed her aunt dangerously._

 _"I- it- it appears that I've gotten m-my first period, Aunt Trunchbull," Jenny managed to stammer._

 _"You've ruined my chair. You filthy, nasty, disgusting excuse for a girl. You need to be taught a lesson," sneered her aunt._

 _"No, Aunt Trunchbull. Please!" cried Jenny. Any time her aunt decided she was going to "teach her a lesson," it always ended very badly for Jenny. Once, when Jenny was seven, one of her aunt's "lessons" ended with a trip to the emergency room, under the guise that Jenny had "fallen down the stairs", and Jenny's left arm in a cast. But it was too late. Jenny watched her aunt storm across the room and grab the broom Jenny had been using earlier to sweep the floor. Using her brute strength, she snapped the broom handle in half, and turned to face Jenny with a cruel smile on her face. "Please, Aunt Trunchbull, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! Please don't beat me!"_

 _"Beat you?" her aunt laughed cruelly. "Oh no, little Jenny. I have something else planned for you."_

 _As her aunt approached her menacingly with the broom handle, Jenny suddenly knew what was about to happen. She couldn't control the gutteral scream that erupted from her throat as the assault began. A scream that didn't end until ten minutes later when her aunt had finally stopped, leaving Jenny, lying broken and bleeding, on the kitchen floor._

 _Somehow, Jenny managed to fall asleep that night, after tossing and turning for hours. Her privates ached, matched only by the aching shame in her heart. As Jenny drifted off to sleep, she thought to herself that this couldn't go on any longer. There was not one good, happy thing in her life, and she didn't want to live anymore. She decided that she would take her own life, and finally be reunited with her parents again. The last people who had ever shown her any love, whom she hadn't seen in so long. Jenny couldn't even remember her mother, and despite how fiercely she tried to hold on to memories of her father- King Magnus, even those memories were beginning to fade with time. The thought made Jenny so sad she felt like she could barely breathe. As thoughts of her pain and suffering finally coming to an end filled her head, Jenny finally drifted off to sleep._

 _That night, Jenny had a dream. In her dream, she was an adult woman. She was sitting on the front porch of her house, only the house looked like it used to back when her mother and father were alive, and it was pretty and there were flowers and no chipped paint. It was a beautiful spring day and she was wearing a pretty floral dress. She was pouring tea. There was someone else sitting at the table. A little girl with brown hair. In her dream, Jenny knew that this girl was her daughter. The girl looked up at Jenny with the sweetest face Jenny had ever seen and smiled. A sense of bliss came over Jenny. Suddenly, the dream shifted and she was walking down a path with her father. Jenny was no longer an adult woman and was back to being 13. Magnus suddenly stopped walking and turned to face Jenny, taking both of her hands in his. "Jenny," he said, urgency in both his voice and his eyes. "HOLD ON, Bumblebee, hold on, please. Stay alive, it's not your time yet. What you've just seen is going happen for you. Stay alive for her. She needs you." With that, the dream faded and Jenny woke up with a start._

 _At school that day, Jenny couldn't concentrate in her classes. Was it true? Was the dream real? Was she going to be a mother to an adorable little brown haired girl someday and be happy? Jenny couldn't explain it, but she knew that her father visiting her in her dream was real. And her father would never lie to her. Somehow, she was going to escape this hell she was stuck in and have a good life. She just had to hold on. That afternoon, Jenny sat alone at a small table in the library, working on her homework. She shifted uncomfortably, the wadded up toilet paper she'd stuffed into her panties chafing her raw, sore skin. Jenny stretched her legs out and felt her right foot kick something. Jenny bent down to look underneath the table and saw a blue notebook. She picked it up and opened it, figuring that the owner might have written his or her name on the inside cover. But it was blank. As a matter of fact, the whole book was blank. Jenny knew that she should turn the notebook in to the Lost and Found, as it certainly belonged to someone who was missing it. But she didn't. Jenny couldn't bring herself to tell anyone about what was happening to her at home. She was too filled with shame and, besides, who would believe her? Agatha Trunchbull was a former Olympian who had won two gold medals and a silver medal for her country. People respected her. No one except Jenny knew what she was like behind closed doors. But now, Jenny had a diary. A diary that she could tell everything to without fear of judgment. She had to keep it secret though. If her aunt found it she would probably kill her. Jenny heard other kids throw that phrase around loosely. "If I fail this test my parents will kill me" or, "My mom will kill me if she knows I lost my necklace." But Jenny knew what Agatha Trunchbull was capable of, and she knew that if her aunt found her diary that she very well would kill Jenny, just like Jenny knew deep down that she had done to Jenny's father. But Jenny could write in her diary at school, if she got her homework done fast enough and had time leftover. And she could write late at night, after her aunt went to sleep. She even had the perfect hiding spot- the loose floorboard underneath the area rug in her bedroom. She knew her aunt didn't know about that, and would never find it there. This small act of rebellion against her Aunt Trunchbull made Jenny feel more alive than she'd felt in years. Jenny hastily finished her homework and then pushed it aside. She picked up the blue notebook, opened it to the first page, and began to write._

"Mom? Mom?" Jenny was snapped out of her thoughts by her sweet little girl tugging on her blouse. "Mom, the cab is here!" said Matilda excitedly. Jenny stood up, took her daughter's small hand in her own, and made her way to the cab.


	5. Chapter 5

_Pull it together, Jenny_ , Jenny thought to herself as the cab pulled up in front of GymStars. _Today is about Matilda, and it's going to be a happy and exciting day for her. Don't ruin it by dredging up memories of the past._ Jenny took in the large, imposing, modern building with the _GymStars Gymnastics Club_ logo emblazoned in large gold and navy letters above the entrance. A large banner proclaiming " _Home of the 2018 Level 10 California State Champion_ " hung below it. "Wow," said Matilda breathlessly, taking it all in. "It's so big!"

"It is," agreed Jenny. "Are you nervous?"

"Nah," said Matilda confidently. "Just excited. I can't wait to see the inside!"

"Then let's go check it out!" exclaimed Jenny, reaching for Matilda's hand. Together, the two entered the building.

The inside of GymStars was immaculately clean with gleaming tile floors and a reception desk straight ahead. Behind the reception desk was a navy blue accent wall and another gold GymStars Gymnastics Club logo. The walls in the lobby were covered in framed photos of gymnasts captured in beautiful leaps and poses. Jenny noticed that many of them were signed. Sitting behind the desk was a friendly looking blond woman in a navy blue polo shirt with a gold GymStars logo on the left breast. Jenny placed her in maybe her early fifties. The woman looked up from her computer screen as Jenny and Matilda approached and smiled warmly.

"Hi! Are you Jennifer? I'm Pam- we spoke on the phone," said Pam, extending her hand.

"Hi, yes," said Jenny, extending her hand. "You can call me Jenny, and this is my daughter, Matilda." Jenny beamed with pride. She was so proud of Matilda. So proud to be her mother, and to take her places and introduce her to people. It would never get old.

"Pleased to meet you," said Matilda, extending her small hand.

"My!" exclaimed Pam in delighted surprise as she shook Matilda's hand. "What a delightfully polite child you've got there! And I love that name, Matilda. It's so unique and pretty. I'm so excited to have you both join our GymStars family. Would you like to join me on a tour of our facility?"

As Jenny and Matilda nodded yes, Pam called out to a young woman in her early twenties who was also wearing a navy GymStars polo. "Jessie, can you man the desk while I give this prospective student and her mother a tour? Thanks!"

"Alright, follow me!" she said as she beckoned to Jenny and Matilda to follow her. Jenny couldn't help but smile at the positive energy that Pam radiated. Jenny, who had always been so soft spoken and shy, admired people who lit up a room like Pam.

Pam led Jenny and Matilda down a short hall and then motioned to a door on her right. "This here is our girls' locker room," she explained as she pulled open the door. "After you," she said, holding the door for Jenny and Matilda. "As you can see, this is a state of the art facility. We've got the toilets and sinks over here to the right, and showers over here on the left. Up ahead," she said, leading Jenny and Matilda further into the room, "you'll see we've got benches, private changing stalls, and large lockers. As a Level 1, Matilda wouldn't have much of a need for a locker here. These are mainly used by the more advanced gymnasts who train daily. Most of the children in the lower levels come and go from their lessons in their leotards, but of course the locker room is open to everyone!"

They kept walking, and encountered a small gym with treadmills, elliptical machines, free weights, and miscellaneous gym equipment that Jenny could not for the life of her say what they were. "This is our mini-gym", explained Pam. "The girls can work out in here for extra conditioning. This is invaluable for our gymnasts who are injured and unable to train- it allows them to maintain a level of conditioning. That way, when they're cleared to resume training, they won't have as much ground to make up." Pam pointed out a young girl with a beautiful, thick red braid down her back, who was doing sit-ups on a piece of the equipment. Jenny noticed she had a cast on her right foot. "That's Katie. She's one of our standout level 8's. She's recovering from a broken foot but she's been dedicated to staying in shape while she's out." Jenny noticed that Katie, who appeared to be maybe 12 or 13, had headphones in her ears and seemed completely oblivious to the fact that there were people in the room, let alone that those people were discussing her. "This gym equipment is also available to parents who would like to get in a workout while they're waiting during their children's lessons."

Pam beckoned Matilda and Jenny to follow her. They exited the locker room and emerged into the gym. "Wow," gasped Jenny. "I've never seen anything like this!" The gym looked even bigger on the inside than it had on the outside, if that was possible. There were four balance beams, all lined up parallel to each other, four sets of uneven bars, a vaulting table with a long runway, and a large square floor. And that was just the side where the girls were practicing! On the other side of the gym was a second large square floor, another vaulting table with a runway, and several sets of parallel bars, horizontal bars, pommel horses, and rings suspended from the ceiling. In the middle, there was a large trampoline, and a bouncy tumbling track with a big foam pit at the end. Everywhere Jenny looked, there were girls in brightly colored leotards and boys too, flipping, running, and leaping. Jenny couldn't even imagine how exciting and freeing it must feel to catapult through the air like that. She couldn't wait for Matilda to experience that! She wanted Matilda's childhood to be filled with every wonder and experience she could provide for the little girl.

"Now if you'll look up here," said Pam, pointing up to what appeared to be an enclosed glass waiting room, "here's the parents' observation area. We have another one on the other side of the gym, closer to the boys' equipment." She led Jenny and Matilda up a flight of stairs and held the door for them. "We don't allow parents out on the floor, for safety reasons and to eliminate distractions for our athletes, but you are of course welcome to watch any and every lesson. We've got Wi-fi, a TV, a coffee machine, and another restroom up here." Jenny looked around and saw about a dozen and a half parents- all women except for one man. Most of the parents were reading or fiddling on their phones, and some were chatting with each other. Most of the parents had looked over to see who was entering the room, and Jenny felt numerous pairs of eyes on her.

"Everyone, this is Jenny and her daughter Matilda!" announced Pam. "Matilda is interested in joining our level 1 class." Jenny smiled and waved awkwardly to the group, holding Matilda's small hand in her own. Jenny was used to having lots of children's eyes on her while she was in the front of the classroom teaching, but she felt uncomfortable being the center of attention in a room full of adults. Jenny's eyes met the gaze of the only dad in the room, and she blushed. She smiled and quickly looked down out of shyness. He was so handsome! When she glanced back up, he had already looked back down at his book but she could see he had a small smile on his face. She glanced at his left hand. No ring. _Stop it, Jenny!_ she internally scolded herself. _You are not here to flirt with men or look for a boyfriend. Don't be ridiculous. You're here for Matilda!_ Still… it didn't hurt to look, and he was the most handsome man Jenny had ever seen with his chiseled jawline with just a little bit of stubble, brown eyes, and perfectly straight teeth. And she loved the way men looked in glasses. As a glasses wearer herself, she couldn't help but subscribe to the total stereotype that it made one look more intellectual. Plus he was reading. She craned her neck to see if she could catch the title of the book in his hands.

"Moving along," said Pam, ushering Jenny and Matilda back out of the room. Jenny risked one more glance back at the handsome man, and couldn't believe it when she met his gaze. He was looking at her too! Was it possible that he found her attractive too, or was he just bored and his eyes were naturally drawn to the action that was going on in the room?

They made their way back down the steps and walked through an entryway that led back towards the main lobby. "On your left here," said Pam, motioning towards a room that was filled with brightly colored merchandise, "you'll see we have a store. Plenty of GymStars gear- t-shirts, sweatshirts, sweatpants, warmups, etc. And we also have a pretty large selection of leotards in all size, from preschoolers to teens. Right now we're trying to push out our spring gear to make room for the summer line, so we are running a buy one, get one special."

Jenny squeezed Matilda's hand and asked, "What do you think, sweetheart? Is this still something you want to do?"

"Without a doubt," replied Matilda earnestly.

"Well then," said Jenny with a smile, placing her hands gently on the top of Matilda's shoulders. "Just let me know what I need to do to get her signed up, and then we'll get Matilda something to wear for her first class!" She looked down and saw that Matilda was hopping excitedly from foot to foot, barely able to contain her excitement. Matilda was normally such a serious and reserved child. She had definitely been coming out of her shell in the time she had been with Jenny, and Jenny was starting to see more and more displays of joy and excitement from the child, but they were still emotions that Matilda was learning to freely feel and express. In the Wormwood household, Matilda had learned at a very young age that her best days were the ones in which she made herself seen and heard as little as possible.

"Great!" said Pam, motioning Jenny into a small office. Pam sat down at the L-shaped desk in front of a large computer screen. "Have a seat and we'll go over the paperwork and financials! First I'll need you to fill out these forms," said Pam, sliding a thick envelope of papers towards Jenny. Most of these you can fill out now, and then the last two papers will be for Matilda's pediatrician. We'll just need proof of a recent physical and current immunizations prior to her first class."

"We can certainly do that," said Jenny. As a matter of fact, she had just taken Matilda to the doctor two weeks ago. One of the first orders of business after Matilda had come to live with Jenny was to take her to a pediatrician. Making sure that Matilda's needs were met was Jenny's top priority now. She had been shocked- although was she, really?- to learn from Matilda that her parents had not been taking her to a doctor when she was sick, or even for routine physicals. _"My mom took me to an urgent care place once when I had pneumonia and was so sick I could barely breathe, and she was mad about having to take me because she was missing bingo. Usually when I wasn't feeling well she'd just tell me to suck it up and drink more water and leave me home alone like always,"_ Matilda had told her. Jenny knew what it was like to have her medical needs neglected. Her Aunt Trunchbull rarely, if ever, took her to a doctor when she was little. _Probably because she was scared the abuse would be discovered_ , thought Jenny. The only time Jenny could ever remember her aunt attending to her medical needs was the time she had broken her arm. Jenny had been so little- only seven years old. Barely older than Matilda was now. Her aunt had even realized that she'd taken things too far and that she couldn't ignore Jenny's clearly broken forearm. She had threatened Jenny on the drive to the emergency room. _"If you breathe one word to ANYONE about how you got this injury, I will lock you in the basement without food for three days. Do you understand me?"_

Jenny thought back to that doctor's visit when Matilda had gotten her shots. Jenny could tell that Matilda- her sweet, courageous little girl- was scared, and it broke her heart. The kindly pediatrician, Dr. Sanderson, who had to be in his seventies and looked like a stereotypical Santa Claus with his white hair, matching beard, and glasses, had seen that Matilda was shaking. He had picked up on the fact that she loved to read, as he had noticed with great surprise that she had carried a copy of _Of Mice and Men_ into the exam room. He asked Matilda about the book as he bustled around the room, preparing the syringes. Matilda was so engrossed in explaining what she was reading, that when Dr. Sanderson exclaimed, _"all done!"_ , Matilda had actually asked, _"all done with what?"_

 _"This isn't my first rodeo, little one,"_ Dr. Sanderson had said with a mischievous wink. _"I've been giving scared children shots since the Nixon administration."_

Jenny got to the first line of the document she was signing, "CHILD'S NAME", and stopped. While Jenny had been living as mother and daughter since the moment Matilda had leapt into her arms that wonderful day three weeks ago, adoptions are not quite so easy as signing Xeroxed forms from a library book. Jenny knew that the signed paperwork from the Wormwoods did not actually made the adoption legal or valid. Jenny was so terrified of having Matilda taken away from her, and part of her was so tempted to just not mention it to anyone and just live in peace with Matilda, raising her and loving her. But Jenny knew that was wrong on several levels. First, what if Matilda got hurt, or sick? If Jenny had to take her to the hospital and make medical decisions for Matilda's care and treatment, as her parent, she would need to be her _legal_ parent. And for that matter, if Jenny wanted to add Matilda to her health insurance plan, she would need to make things legal in order to do so. Not to mention, Jenny didn't want to always be looking over her shoulder, afraid that Matilda would get taken away from her. No, she needed to do this the proper way. Jenny had conferred with the school counselor, who had connections with the Department of Child and Family Services. The social worker, Jessica Hardy, explained to Jenny that the first thing she would need to do would be to apply to be an emergency foster parent. Matilda, who had no blood relatives attempting to claim her, was deemed a ward of the state. The social workers attempted to track down the Wormwoods to get a more official renouncement of their parental rights, however the Wormwoods had vanished and all attempts to locate them had been unsuccessful. From then on, it would be a long, arduous process of applications, home visits, parenting classes, meetings, and court hearings. Jenny and Matilda still had a lot of hoops to jump through before the adoption would be made official, but the most important thing, _thank God_ , was that Matilda had never been removed from her care. Not even for one night. Jenny, obviously, was proving to be a fit, capable, and loving parent, and Jessica advised her that she foresaw absolutely no problems whatsoever that would prevent the adoption from being finalized. Everyone could see how happy and well taken care of Matilda was. Jenny could not wait until the day that Matilda became Matilda Honey for good.

Which brought her back to the present. "Um, Pam…?" Jenny asked hesitantly. "I realize most parents probably don't get tripped up on the first line, but, you see, I've recently adopted Matilda. Well, I'm in the process of doing so. I already consider her my daughter in every way, but, her last name is still her old name, Wormwood. But it's going to be changed soon, to Honey, through the courts. Which should I use?"

"Oh, wow!" said Pam with surprise. "I would never have guessed you and Matilda weren't biological mother and daughter. I mean… you're so natural with each other. You even look alike!"

Jenny and Matilda looked at each other and smiled. It was not the first time someone had said those things.

"Just use whatever is Matilda's current, legal name," said Pam with a wave of her hand. "It will be easy to update it in the system once things are official. That's not problem at all. How exciting!"

Jenny finished signing the forms, including the financials, which admittedly made her eyebrows raise practically to her hairline when she saw the cost of the lessons. But cost was really of no concern. Not that Jenny was wealthy as a school teacher, by any means. But Jenny had been used to getting by on so little for so long that her needs were very simple. She didn't lead an extravagant lifestyle, didn't long for lavish possessions. And now she was earning her full salary, was living in a home that was completely paid off, and had her inheritance sitting securely in the bank. She even had a small amount of money coming in from the state to cover her "foster daughter", until things were made permanent. Jenny was fine on money. Just as she had told Harry Wormwood that day they had left Matilda in her care, they had everything they needed.

After signing the forms, Jenny and Matilda made their way back to the store. Pam led Matilda and Jenny toward a circular rack of leotards and explained, "This whole rack is the smalls. Now, I could be wrong, but I'm usually not so I believe this should be your size. The dressing room is over there on your right- just make sure to keep your underwear on when you try them on, ok? Mom, you can go in with her, there's a bench to sit on."

Matilda's eyes were bright with excitement as she rummaged through the brightly colored leotards on the rack. She selected two- a pretty pale blue sleeveless leotard with a white and gray swirl pattern, and a plain bright yellow leotard- also sleeveless- with white piping and a criss-cross design on the back. "These are my two favorites," said Matilda. "I'll just make sure they fit."

Jenny and Matilda entered the large dressing room, where Jenny sat down on the cushioned bench. Matilda stripped down to her underwear and pulled on the first leotard. As Pam had predicted, it was a perfect fit. She stood in front of the three-way mirror, admiring herself with an excited smile. "I love it mommy! What do you think?"

Jenny loved seeing the little girl so happy. "You look terrific!" she exclaimed. "Definitely a winner. Now let's see the yellow one!"

Matilda stripped back down to her underwear and pulled on the yellow leotard. Jenny felt tears in her eyes as she looked at her daughter standing before her in her new gymnastics leotard. Proud, happy, confident, excited. Everything that Jenny had never gotten a chance to be or to feel as a little girl. Everything that Jenny was determined that Matilda would feel every day of her childhood. "I love it!" exclaimed Jenny, clasping her hands together. "You look like my little ray of sunshine."

Jenny and Matilda made their purchases, also adding on a pair of GymStars track pants for Matilda and an adult sized GymStars t-shirt for Jenny. _Why not get into the spirit too?_ thought Jenny. Jenny thought to herself that, while Matilda's wardrobe contained plenty of dresses and overalls and t-shirts, she really did not have any athletic clothes. She'd run out to Target and get Matilda some shorts and t-shirts and tank tops. They bid Pam farewell and walked back out into the sunshine, which was warm and golden and low in the sky. Jenny looked down at Matilda and smiled at the exact same moment that Matilda looked up at Jenny and smiled. It had been a good day.


	6. Chapter 6

Later that evening, Jenny and Matilda enjoyed a delicious, healthy meal of salmon salad that Jenny had prepared for the two of them. Jenny, who for years had been forced to live on barely enough food to keep her going, suddenly found herself with the money and the means to go grocery shopping and purchase anything she wanted. It was almost overwhelming the first time she went to the grocery store and realized she had no limitations on what she could put in her cart. No longer would she have to ration one meager loaf of bread over the course of a week. Jenny knew that she was underweight and malnourished, and it was taking time for her to feel that she even had the room in her stomach to eat a full meal. But slowly, when she looked in the mirror, she could tell that she was starting to fill out and develop a more womanly figure than the bony, frail body she'd had her whole life. Even her colleagues were complimenting how lovely she had been looking lately. Jenny attributed part of that to better nutrition, but even more of that to the bliss she felt from taking care of Matilda. Now that she was parenting a growing little girl, Jenny placed a great deal of importance on grocery shopping and planning wholesome, balanced meals. Jenny quickly learned that, at the tender age of 6, Matilda had already honed culinary skills that were far beyond her own. Matilda had explained to her that her parents almost always left her to fend for herself for meals. The thought of her sweet little girl having to prepare her own meals while her neglectful parents were off doing God knows what incensed Jenny to no end.

Jenny's feelings towards the Wormwoods were complicated. On one hand, Jenny, who had such a loving heart and was not at all prone to hateful feelings, felt like she hated Harry and Zinnia Wormwood. How cruel and neglectful they had been to their sweet daughter! They insulted her and berated her at every chance they got, belittled her interests, destroyed her property on purpose, and discouraged her from being smart and reading and learning. Matilda had recalled, much to Jenny's anger, how her parents had actually _laughed_ at her and mocked her for expressing her desire to be enrolled in school. Just thinking of it made Jenny's blood pressure rise to a boil. They didn't even know their own daughter's age! This fact absolutely disgusted Jenny. They had thought their six and a half year old daughter was four years old. Jenny inferred from that that they had likely never thrown Matilda a birthday party, or even celebrated or acknowledged her birthday.

For all of her anger towards the Wormwoods, Jenny also acknowledged the other side of the coin. Whenever Jenny started stewing in her hateful feelings towards the Wormwoods, she had to remember that if it weren't for them, Matilda wouldn't even exist. And if it hadn't been for their decision to surrender Matilda's care to Jenny, Jenny would not know the absolute happiness she had felt every day for the past three weeks. She wouldn't be a mother. She wouldn't have her precious little girl.

Matilda's 7th birthday was coming up on August 2nd. Jenny couldn't wait to throw her the first birthday party she'd ever had. She couldn't wait to buy her presents, and bake her a delicious cake, and sing happy birthday to her. She thought about how she would buy Matilda a new dress and a new hair ribbon for her party, and how happy Matilda would be to be surrounded by her friends. It would be perfect, she would make sure of that. She thought about what she might get Matilda for her birthday. Matilda, who, like Jenny, had learned to get by and survive on so little, was the least greedy child Jenny had ever met. Matilda never asked Jenny for anything other than her time, which Jenny freely gave to her. Spending time with Matilda, whether they were pushing each other on the swing, or playing hide and seek, or cuddling in bed and reading, was the best part of Jenny's day. Jenny was thrilled that Matilda was starting to feel comfortable enough with her that she asked for the gymnastics lessons. Jenny knew that Matilda wouldn't have asked on her own accord, without Jenny's prompting, but nevertheless she had asked Jenny for something for the first time. Jenny was so happy that she had the means to provide Matilda with these lessons she wanted.

Dinner that night had been a lively discussion about their visit to GymStars, the people they had met, and Matilda's anticipation of her first gymnastics lesson. After dinner, Matilda, out of habit from her years of living with the Wormwoods, had started clearing the dishes when Jenny placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and said with a smile, "Honey, go play and enjoy yourself. I've got this." As Jenny was putting the final touches on cleaning up the kitchen, she was startled by a loud _THUD_. She stopped, confused, trying to figure out what the noise was and where exactly it had come from when she heard another loud _THUD_. It was coming from upstairs. Matilda! Jenny raced up the stairs, down the hall, and burst through the door to Matilda's bedroom. There, standing before Jenny, was sweet little Matilda in her blue gymnastics leotard, her brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. "Mommy! Watch this!" cried Matilda with glee as she stood up on her bed, jumped down to the floor, and threw her arms up into the air, puffing out her chest and smiling. "It's my perfect 10 landing!"

"Oh Matilda!" said Jenny, clutching her chest. "You gave me such a fright! I thought you might be hurt."

"Oh no, mommy, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you. I'm just so excited about gymnastics and wanted to try on my leotards and practice!" said Matilda, her lower lip trembling.

"It's okay, sweetheart!" Jenny reassured her, kneeling down and pulling Matilda into a hug. "I'm not mad! I want you to play and have fun and be excited. Now that I know what's going on in here and that you're okay, feel free to carry on." Jenny assessed that it was maybe about a two and a half foot distance from the bed to the bedroom floor, and she didn't really see a way that Matilda could hurt herself. There was no harm in her jumping around and playing in her room. "Just promise me you'll be safe and not try any actual gymnastics moves," she told the little girl. "Jumping from the bed to the floor is fine, but anything else you shouldn't be trying until you are taught to do it properly and have supervision, okay? No flips or anything crazy." Matilda nodded solemnly. "I just love you so much sweetheart, and don't want to see you get hurt."

Matilda buried her head in the crook of Jenny's neck and she hugged her tightly. Jenny felt Matilda's hot breath on her skin. "I'm so happy," she mumbled into Jenny's neck.

"I'm happy too, honey!" said Jenny, feeling tears threatening to spill from her eyes. "What has you feeling so happy right now in particular?" she asked curiously.

Matilda pulled back from Jenny's embrace and sat down on her lap. "You," she said earnestly. "Every day I wake up and every day I go to sleep knowing that I'm loved and that I have someone who is going to take care of me now. I don't have to be alone all the time, and do everything for myself anymore. It's just… really nice. Thank you for making dinner tonight."

"Oh sweetheart," said Jenny, cradling Matilda in her arms. It still amazed Jenny at how adult-like Matilda sounded when expressing herself. "I'm sorry you had such a difficult start in life with a family who didn't appreciate you or take care of you the way you needed and deserved, but things are so different now. Now you can be a kid and play and have fun and enjoy your life. I don't want you to worry about any of that stuff anymore. You're safe, you're loved, and you are incredibly wanted." With that, she kissed Matilda's forehead and stood up. "I have some schoolwork I have to grade by Monday morning, so feel free to keep playing. Just remember what I said about being careful, okay?" With that, Jenny exited Matilda's bedroom and made her way back downstairs, where her stack of school papers awaited her in the living room. Jenny curled up in her favorite chair- her father's chair- in front of the fireplace and began to read her students' assignments.

As Jenny made her way through the stack of papers, she felt her eyelids getting heavy. She should really get up and go upstairs and just get ready for bed, but her sleepiness overtook her and she found herself drifting off in the plush wingback chair…

Jenny opened her eyes groggily and glanced at her watch. 11:17PM? There's no way she had napped that long! Where was Matilda? It was way past her bedtime! She was probably curled up and reading a book and perfectly fine, but nevertheless, Jenny hurried upstairs. As she made her way down the hall towards Matilda's room, she heard crying. No, not crying. Sobbing. She raced down the remainder of the hall and pushed open the door. "Matilda, are you hurt? I'm so sorry, I-" Jenny stopped dead in her tracks. There was Matilda, still in her gymnastics leotard, sitting on the floor. The plush area rug had been peeled halfway back, one of the floorboards was ajar, and Matilda was holding a blue notebook in her lap, tears streaming down her face. "Mommy. Mommy, I found your diary," said Matilda between sobs.

"Oh Matilda," Jenny rushed over to Matilda and pulled the little girl into her lap. "Shh, it's okay. It's okay. I can't believe you found this. How on earth did you find it? I had even forgotten it was there." When Jenny had fled her childhood home all those years ago, she had attempted to flee all the memories too, put everything firmly where it belonged in her past. She should have known that you can't outrun trauma like that forever.

Matilda tried to answer her, but she was still sobbing too hard to form words. "Shh," Jenny reassured her, stroking her hair soothingly. "Take your time. You don't have to answer me till you're ready."

When Matilda had finally caught her breath and calmed herself down enough to answer Jenny, she started, "I was doing my perfect 10 landings, and I thought it would be fun to see how far I could jump from the bed and still land perfectly. So I jumped almost into the middle of the room, but when I landed the floor sounded funny and it felt funny, almost like it was wobbly. I got curious and I pulled up the carpet to take a look and that's when I discovered the loose board. Mommy, it was just an accident I found it- I wasn't trying to snoop!" Matilda's eyes were wide and fearful.

"It's okay honey," Jenny reassured her again. "Come here," she said, standing up and taking Matilda's hand. "Sit on the bed with me where it's more comfortable than the floor." She and Matilda settled themselves onto Matilda's plush pink and green floral comforter. Jenny turned to Matilda and took the little girl's small hands in her own. "Matilda, sweetheart, I wasn't ready for you to know about my childhood, not because I didn't trust you, but because of how upsetting it was. The details I put into my diary… I poured my soul into that diary, and it's graphic. It's very graphic, and it's upsetting. You're only 6 years old and I don't want you burdened with that. You've carried around so much burden for so long, and now is your time to be a kid and to play and be happy. I want you to have so much fun, and not be reading and hearing about such disturbing things. And I know how much you love me and how upset you'd be. Baby, I just wanted to protect you from this."

"I understand," said Matilda solemnly. "I knew she abused you, I just didn't imagine…" she trailed off. "Mommy, that's sexual abuse, what she did to you."

"I know, sweetie," said Jenny.

"I just don't understand how anyone could hurt kids," said Matilda, her sweet face scrunched into an expression of complicated emotions. Bewilderment, anger, disgust, incredulity.

"I know," acknowledged Jenny, wiping away tears. "Me neither." Jenny looked at Matilda's tear-streaked face, and it finally clicked for her- the enormity of what had happened to her as a little girl. Jenny had spent so many years trying to repress and forget, but now that she was a mother and had a child whom she loved more than anything in the world and would die to protect, she truly got what a horrible, disgusting thing had happened to her. The thought of anyone hurting Matilda the way Jenny's Aunt Trunchbull had hurt her physically nauseated Jenny to the point that she felt bile rise in her throat. Granted, Jenny had been older than Matilda when the abuse got bad, but she was still a child! The thought of her sweet, kind, innocent Matilda crying herself to sleep at night, alone, wracked with fear and shame, while her raw, sore genitals ached and bled… Jenny swallowed hard and took a long, steadying breath. _NO_. She wouldn't let her thoughts go there. That was _never_ going to happen to Matilda. She would die before she would let anyone harm her little girl. Matilda was going to have nothing but a joyful childhood from here on out.

"Sweetheart, we've both had a very emotional past 24 hours, "said Jenny, "and it's late. Let's talk more about this tomorrow, okay? I'm going to go brush my teeth and change into my jammies. "Why don't you do the same and I'll come tuck you in?"

Several minutes later, Jenny was tucking a pajama-clad Matilda snugly into bed her warm, cozy bed. She smoothed Matilda's bangs back and kissed her forehead. "Goodnight, my love," she whispered to her little girl, who was already drifting off. "Remember, you're safe, I'm safe, and we have each other now."


	7. Chapter 7

The first day of Matilda's gymnastics lessons arrived before Jenny knew it. The school year had just come to an end and, even though Jenny would miss her students, she was unbelievably excited about the prospect of having an entire summer stretched ahead of her and Matilda. Jenny couldn't wait to have two and a half whole months to play, read, and explore with her daughter. Jenny used to feel such despair on the last day of school, because she led such an isolated life of poverty and her work was the one thing that brought her happiness and social interaction and a sense of purpose. But now she was a mother! A mother to the most wonderful little girl in the world. Jenny had the one thing she had always dreamed about- a loving family, and each day she and Matilda grew closer and more comfortable in their new life together.

It was an unusually cool mid-June day, and Matilda had decided on her yellow leotard. She threw on a pair of white cotton athletic shorts and a purple t-shirt over it, and slid some black Nike slides onto her small feet. Jenny had painted Matilda's tiny little toenails a sweet pale pink the previous evening. She looked so adorable. Jenny had lovingly brushed Matilda's hair and smoothed it back into a neat ponytail. Matilda could not contain her excitement and had been twirling and leaping around the house all afternoon.

Jenny felt silly, but she past several weeks she hadn't been able to get that handsome father at GymStars out of her head. She wondered if he'd be there! Since she wasn't coming from school, she had a little extra time to spend on getting ready. Although Jenny did not have a vain bone in her body, she had acknowledged that she was probably was overdue for some new clothes. And now that her new life included an occasional happy hour after school with her colleagues and the inevitable social interaction with other parents that came with having a busy and active child, Jenny had begun to feel a little self conscious about her prim, conservative wardrobe. She thought that it couldn't hurt to have some slightly… sexier… things to wear. She didn't want to look _slutty_ by all means, but it hadn't escaped her that recently people were starting to _notice_ her. And she liked it. She was eating a healthy diet, and she had even recently started exercising. There was a lovely biking trail about a quarter mile from Jenny and Matilda's house, and Jenny had splurged on bicycles for her and Matilda. She got a shiny blue one for Matilda- her daughter's favorite color- and a pale pink one for herself. She and Matilda had enjoyed many afternoons biking down the trail and taking a break in the clearance to enjoy a picnic that Jenny had packed for them in the white wicker basket attached to the front of her bike. Jenny had also started doing some sit-ups, pushups, and squats on the carpet in her bedroom after Matilda went to sleep. She was starting to see a change in her body- a good change. Her previously frail, bony body now had curves and definition, and she had to admit that she felt really good about herself. She had even recently purchased some makeup. Not a lot- but some light brown eye shadow, mascara, and subtle pink lipstick to bring out her natural beauty.

Jenny looked over the new clothes hanging in her closet before deciding on a slim fitting pair of jeans that fit her body like a glove, a pale blue cold shoulder blouse with a neck that came to a V in the front- showing just the tiniest hint of cleavage (not like she really had much), and some strappy flat brown sandals. She blow dried her hair and curled it in loose waves around her shoulders. She finished applying her makeup and stepped back to admire her reflection in the mirror. Just then, Matilda burst through the door. "Mom! We should probably call for the-" she stopped short and gaped at Jenny. "Mom, you look so beautiful!"

Jenny smiled. "Thank you, Matilda! Since it's your first day of lessons and I thought that I could treat you to dinner out afterwards. What do you think?" Matilda's eyes shone bright and she flashed that big toothy grin that Jenny had grown to adore. "Yes please!" she exclaimed, wrapping her little arms around Jenny's waist. Jenny almost always made dinner at home for the two of them, so dining out was definitely a special occasion. The day that the Wormwoods had pulled away in a cloud of dust, leaving Jenny holding her new daughter on the front porch, she had taken Matilda out to dinner to celebrate. It had been the best day of her life.

Jenny called for the cab and they sat on the bench underneath the willow tree out front to wait. Jenny draped her arm over Matilda's shoulder and pulled the little girl towards her. She thought back on the past several weeks and how far she and Matilda had come in their new journey as mother and daughter together. The day after Matilda had found Jenny's old diary, the two of them had sat down and had a long talk.

 _"Matilda," Jenny had began, "did your mother ever talk to you about your body?" Jenny blew out a long breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. Parenting was still new to her, and having a talk like this was definitely uncharted waters._

 _Matilda's brows had furrowed in confusion. "My body? What about it?" she asked._

 _"Well, Jenny forged on awkwardly, "you remember what you read about in my diary last night. About what my Aunt Trunchbull did to me and the places that she hurt me on my body, right?" Matilda nodded solemnly. "I guess what I'm trying to get at," said Jenny, "is that I'm wondering if your mother ever discussed with you what parts of your body are private and off-limits for anyone to touch."_

 _Matilda breathed in a deep breath and sighed. "Well," she started, "my parents never talked to me about anything, really. They usually left me alone and ignored me, and if they were talking to me they were yelling at me and telling me I was stupid and to leave them alone. I remember I tried telling my mom about my first day of school, but she was on the phone and plugged her fingers in her ears to tune me out." Jenny's heart would never stop breaking at hearing Matilda talk about her home life and the way she had been treated prior to Jenny taking her in._

 _"But I read a pamphlet about child abuse at the library once," Matilda continued. "So I know that my vagina is private. And my butt." Her cheeks flushed. "It's kind of embarrassing to talk about. But I know no one is allowed to touch me down there."_

 _"That's absolutely right," confirmed Jenny. "And your chest too. I know you're still a little girl and you don't have anything on your chest yet, but one day you will, and that's also a private area." It had occurred to Jenny that as Matilda was already almost 7, it wasn't a stretch to think that in the next 3-4 years or so Matilda would probably start growing breasts and need her first bra. The thought of how quickly children grew up and how quickly Matilda was going to grow up terrified Jenny. Jenny took so much joy in watching Matilda grow, but it also saddened her to think that she had already missed out on so much of her life. What she wouldn't give to go back in time and cradle a baby Matilda in her arms, feed her bottles, change her diapers, and bathe her chubby little baby body in the sink. Watch her learn to crawl and then take her first steps, watch her lose her first tooth. Hear her speak her first words, read her first book. Those milestones of her daughter's life were gone, lost to time forever. Precious moments that Jenny would never get to see, wasted on Matilda's cruel and neglectful parents who could not have cared less about any of it. It was so unfair._

 _"No one is allowed to touch your vagina, your butt, or your chest. The only exception to that," said Jenny, "the only exception, is me, because I'm your mother, and that's only if you need help with something, like the night you had an accident and I helped you get cleaned up. You're a very independent, self-sufficient little girl and you can do just about anything for yourself, but you're still a child and once in a while there might be a time where you need help with something. Does that make sense?"_

 _Matilda had nodded. "I still can't believe I did that. I hope it never happens again."_

 _Jenny smiled fondly at her daughter. "You're so much more settled in and comfortable now than you were back when that happened, so the odds are lesser. But remember that so many children your age still have accidents at night and that it's normal and okay. So there's nothing to be ashamed about if it were to happen again, okay?" Matilda nodded._

Jenny's mind drifted back to the present just as the cheerful yellow cab pulled up the drive. "The cab's here!" cried Matilda. "Time for gymnastics!"

Jenny and Matilda walked into the building hand and hand and were immediately greeted by Pam. "Jenny and Matilda! It's so nice to see you back!" Pam directed her attention to Matilda. "Are you excited for your first lesson?" Matilda nodded enthusiastically. "You're about ten minutes early, which is perfect," said Pam. "If Matilda needs to use the restroom before class, I suggest she go now."

Jenny looked down at Matilda. "Do you want to empty out your bladder before class, Matilda? It's probably a good idea." She spoke in a low voice so as not to embarrass Matilda. Matilda nodded.

"I'll tell you what," said Pam. "If you want to go get settled up in the observation room, I'll take Matilda through the locker room and then introduce her to her teacher." Jenny gave Matilda a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Have fun sweetie!"

As Jenny made her way up the short flight of stairs to the observation room, her mind again drifted off to thoughts of that handsome father who had been in here the day she signed Matilda up for classes. Jenny pushed the door open and scanned the room. Much to her disappointment, the man wasn't there. She looked around and noticed many of the women talking, seeming to know each other and have established friendships. Jenny wasn't sure where to sit, so she chose a seat in the front row. She scanned the large gym and noticed Matilda, hand in hand with Pam, exiting the locker room in her yellow leotard. Matilda looked so tiny. She looked up into the observation room and, upon spotting her mom, broke into a big toothy grin and waved. Jenny smiled and waved back, giving Matilda the thumbs up sign.

A woman sitting a few seats down from Jenny smiled. "You're new here, right? I've never seen you before. I'm Gina Martinez."

"Jenny Honey," said Jenny, extending her hand. The two women shook hands. "It's my daughter Matilda's first day in the level 1 class. That's her over there in the yellow leotard standing next to Pam. What about yours?"

"My daughter Stephanie is a level 4. That's her on the balance beam over there, in the green leotard", she said pointing to a beautiful girl with curly dark hair who looked to be maybe a year or two older than Matilda.

The women sat in comfortable silence for a few moments before Jenny forged on, "You know, it's nice to have someone to talk to. To be honest it was a little intimidating walking in here. I'm kind of a shy person, and it seems like everyone already knows each other pretty well."

"Ah," said Gina smiling, "yes, the _gym moms_." At Jenny's inquisitive look, Gina explained, "There are a lot of parents here- mostly mothers- who take their daughters' gymnastics careers way too seriously. It's like they're trying to live vicariously through their daughters. Make up for lost dreams of their own, I don't know. It's pretty competitive and cutthroat and kind of creepy, to be honest. Look, if Stephanie ends up wanting to keep progressing to the higher levels, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it, but it would have to be her decision. Her father and I are very realistic about the fact that this can be an incredibly demanding and pressure filled sport in the higher levels, and that's not what we want for her. We want her to have fun and enjoy herself. Plus we started her a little on the later end. I guess our "loosey goosey" outlook on gymnastics doesn't jive with a lot of the other parents. They're polite enough and all, I just don't really feel like I fit in with them, and I think that feeling goes both ways."

Jenny nodded. "That makes total sense. I feel very similarly. Matilda is very gifted academically and that's where her real passion lies- school, and reading. She was really excited to try gymnastics, but I also see it just as something fun to do- an outlet for her energy and a way for her to boost her confidence and be more well-rounded in her activities."

The two women sat observing their children. Jenny's eyes drifted over to the bars area, where she saw a young girl with a beautiful thick red braid down her back swinging in circles around the high bar. She had some kind of walking cast on one of her feet. "Oh!" exclaimed Jenny. "That's Katie. I remember Pam pointed her out to us the other week when I came to sign Matilda up. I'm glad to see she's on the mend."

"Katie is amazing," said Gina, watching the girl. "She really has the talent and the drive to go far. She's expected to test into level 9 soon. All the little girls worship her."

Jenny watched the girl swinging on the bars with fascination. Gina was used to this, but Jenny had never seen gymnastics being done before. It was awe inspiring! "Which one is her mother?" Jenny asked Gina in a low voice, her eyes darting across the room to the group of _gym moms_. "Oh, the poor girl's mother died when she was little. Her father raises her on his own," Gina whispered back. Jenny paused. Was it possible that the handsome man from the other week was Katie's father?

Gina continued, "Her father, John Keller, is an English professor at the local community college. Katie does a half day at school and partial homeschooling. Her father picks her up at school at lunch and brings her to the gym then goes back to work at the college. He comes back to watch the last few hours of her practice and reads or grades papers. He's a very nice man, mostly keeps to himself. Always seems to be a little sad, to be honest. Very good looking. I think every single mom here has tried to flirt with him, but he politely shuts them down. He's just so devoted to his daughter."

Jenny felt a surge of kinship with this father/daughter duo she didn't even know. She knew what it was like to be a little girl growing up without a mom. She knew what it was like to be a single parent who loved a little girl more than anything in the world. And she knew what it was like to have suffered tremendous loss and to be haunted by it. Jenny figured, based on what Gina had said, that this man, John, probably wouldn't be interested in Jenny romantically. But maybe he could use a friend. Someone who could relate on some level to what he and his daughter were going through.

As if on cue, the handsome father- maybe John?- walked into the observation room. The locked eyes. Maybe she was imagining it, but Jenny thought she saw his eyes widen and his cheeks blush when he saw her. "John!" exclaimed Gina. "Meet my new friend Jenny!" John recovered from his initial surprise at seeing Jenny and made his way over, extending his hand. "John Keller," he said in a deep, sexy voice. "Nice to meet you."

"Jenny Honey," said Jenny. She could feel her face redden. "Pleased to meet you as well. I was just watching your daughter. Gina pointed her out to me," said Jenny as her gaze flickered over to Katie, who was now climbing a tall rope that went all the way up to the rafters using only her upper body. "She's amazing!"

John beamed with pride. "She is, indeed. I'm very proud of her."

Gina made eye contact with Jenny and winked. "I'm going to walk over to the shop next door and get some coffee," she announced, standing up. "I'll leave you two to chat."

Jenny wracked her brain for something to say to John. "Gina tells me you're a professor at the community college? I'm an educator too."

John's eyes lit up with interest. "Yes, I teach English literature and creative writing. What about you? Where do you teach?"

"Crunchem Hall Academy," said Jenny. "I was until recently a first grade teacher but have just become school principal."

"Impressive!" said John, smiling. "Congratulations on the promotion! How are you liking your new role?"

"Mixed feelings, to be honest," replied Jenny, surprising herself with how candid she was being and with how easy she felt talking to him. "It's a lot of responsibility and I like the ability to have a say in the goings on in the school, and the curriculum, and especially the hiring of new teachers. But I do miss teaching and having a classroom. I loved working with the children so closely and seeing them learn and grow. Being principal is very bureaucratic and I find myself dealing with parents more than with children."

John nodded thoughtfully. "That makes a lot of sense. So which kid is yours?" he asked, scanning the gym full of leaping, spinning, tumbling children.

"Over there," said Jenny pointing. "That's my little girl Matilda in the yellow leotard with the brown hair. She'll be 7 soon."

John smiled. "That's a great age. They're still so innocent. Katie is a great kid but I'm definitely experiencing some of the preteen angst," he said with a rueful chuckle. His eyes darted to her naked left hand. "Are you, um… are you also a single parent?" he asked nervously.

Now it was Jenny's turn to smile. "I am indeed. It's just the two of us. Matilda was one of my students and I've recently adopted her. Well, I'm in the process of making the adoption final through the courts."

John's eyes widened. "You adopted one of your students! And as a single mother. Wow. That's really wonderful. Was she an orphan?"

Jenny shook her head no. "Matilda was born to two people who should have never been parents. They never wanted her in the first place, and made no secret about it. They were very neglectful and cruel towards her, and while their treatment of her was appalling in so many ways it never rose to anything criminal that the authorities would be able to act on. By the time she came to my class, they were sending her to school, she had a roof over her head, food to eat, and clean clothes to wear. But she was so starved for love, and for someone to notice her and understand her and appreciate her. She and I just had a real connection, and I did everything I could to make her feel special and to nurture her. Then one day her parents decided to move, and Matilda didn't want to go with them. She asked them if she could stay with me and they agreed. It all happened so fast, but it was the best day of my life. I adore her, and I wouldn't change it for anything in the world."

John looked shocked. "Her parents just… _gave_ her away? Just like that?" When Jenny nodded, John sputtered with disbelief. "I can't even imagine! I'd die before I'd let anyone take my Katie away from me! She's all I have left now," he added with a sad look in his eyes.

"Gina told me that Katie's mother passed away when Katie was young," said Jenny with sympathy. "I'm so sorry. I lost both of my parents when I was young, so I can only imagine how difficult it's been for Katie. And for you."

"You lost both of your parents?" asked John with sympathy in his eyes. "How old were you?"

"I was only 2 when my mother died, and I was 5 when my father was- when my father passed," Jenny finished.

"My God, I'm so sorry," said John. "Who raised you?"

Jenny tensed. "I lived with a step-aunt," she said in a clipped voice, pursing her lips together in a thin line. It would be a joke to say that Agatha Trunchbull had _raised_ her.

John, sensing he had just drifted into a sore subject, navigated the conversation back to safer waters. "Jenny," he said said nervously. "I haven't done this in several years so I apologize if I'm a little rusty, but, would you like to have dinner with me sometime?"

Jenny's eyes widened in surprise.

"It's just been a long time since I've been able to talk so easily with someone, and I'd like to get to know you better," he continued.

Jenny smiled. "I'd love to have dinner with you. Does Saturday night work? I'm sure I can find a babysitter."

"It's a date then!" declared John with a smile. Why don't I get your number?"

The two of them pulled out their cell phones and exchanged numbers. Jenny, miraculously, had not owned a cell phone until just the past few months. Becoming a school principal and a mother had really catapulted Jenny into the modern world. Matilda needed a computer with internet access at home for her classes, and as school principal Jenny occasionally had work she needed to do at home. One of the first things she had done as principal of Crunchem Hall was modernizing the school, hiring a web designer to create a website for the school. The website had an email system for parents and teachers to easily communicate, and teachers could post coursework and assignments online. Jenny could post school events and important information on the main page. The feedback so far had been nothing but positive.

Jenny and John exchanged numbers, with John promising that he'd be in touch soon to firm up plans for Saturday and to get her address.

Jenny felt a pang of guilt when she looked down and noticed that the lesson was wrapping up. She had been so engrossed in her conversation with John that she hadn't focused on watching Matilda as much as she would have liked. She hoped the little girl hadn't noticed. She said goodbye to John, and made her way down to the lobby to wait for Matilda. When Matilda emerged from the locker room several minutes later in her shorts and t-shirt, she spotted Jenny and catapulted into her arms. "Mommy! Did you watch? I had so much fun!"

"I'm so proud of you, sweetheart!" said Jenny, kissing Matilda on the cheek and artfully dodging the "did you watch" question. She set Matilda down and they walked out of the gym, hand in hand, together.


	8. Chapter 8

Jenny could hardly contain her giddiness over dinner that night. She had taken Matilda out to a small, cozy, family-owned Italian restaurant a few blocks from the gym. Over spaghetti with vegetarian meatballs, breadsticks, and salad, Jenny contentedly listened to Matilda's excited chatter about her first gymnastics lesson. "My teacher, Miss Amy, she was a gymnast in college at UCLA. She was REALLY good. She's really nice and she helped me do my forward and backward rolls. I was the oldest girl in the class, which I felt a little uncomfortable about, but Miss Amy whispered to me that the older kids tend to pick up the skills faster and move on to the next level faster than the kids who are 3 and 4 because I have better motor coordination and can retain instructions better. So I feel really good about things. I can't wait till my next lesson!"

Jenny smiled fondly at Matilda. She would never be able to stop marveling that this wonderful little girl, this sweet, kind, engaging, happy little girl was _hers_. Her daughter to love and protect and support and take care of and provide for. Jenny felt so blessed not only to have Matilda, but that she had the financial means to provide Matilda these lessons that were making her so excited and happy. Jenny wanted to give Matilda everything that she had never had as a little girl. As Matilda chattered on, Jenny found herself thinking of John Keller. She was almost in a dreamlike state of shock that he had asked her out on a date!

"Mom?" asked Matilda with an inquisitive expression. "What's up?"

"Oh Matilda," Jenny said with a smile. The most remarkable thing happened today while you were in your lesson. I- I met someone, and he asked me out on a date!"

"What?" asked Matilda incredulously. "How did you meet someone while I was in gymnastics?"

"He's a single dad, and his daughter takes lessons there. Her name is Katie and she's in level 8."

"You're going on a date with Katie's dad?" asked Matilda, wide eyed. "She's so cool!"

"That's the word on the street," said Jenny, smiling. "Sweetheart, how do you feel about me going on a date?"

"Well," said Matilda with deliberation. "I'm really happy the way things are and how we spend so much time together. So I don't want that to change."

"Oh sweetheart," said Jenny empathetically. "I love the way things are too, but I promise you that you are the most important thing in the world to me and I'm not going to spend any less time with you. It's just one dinner! I don't know if anything more will come of things than that. I mean, I hope it does. But I don't want to put the cart before the horse."

Matilda nodded wisely. It always amazed Jenny that she could talk to Matilda like she would an adult, using figures of speech such as _put the cart before the horse_ and have the little girl understand exactly what she was saying. "I want you to be happy, mommy," said Matilda with a small smile. "And you look really happy."

"I am, sweetheart. I'm happy and excited, but I'm also kind of a nervous wreck!" At Matilda's furrowed brows, Jenny answered her daughter's question before she even had to ask it. "I've never been on a date before," she admitted. "Never, and I'm 30 years old. I have no experience with this kind of thing!"

"Mommy, you're the most beautiful and wonderful woman in the world," said Matilda adoringly. Just be yourself and everything will sort itself out."

Jenny felt tears in her eyes. How this child had a way of bringing out emotion in her! "Thank you, honey. That means more to me than you'll ever know. How about I get Hortensia to stay with you Saturday night while I'm out?" Jenny was careful not to use the word babysitter. Even though Matilda was not even 7 yet, it felt strange to use the term babysitter for a little girl who was so wise and mature and self-sufficient. She knew that Matilda didn't _need_ a babysitter, and that she was perfectly capable of minding herself for an evening as she had been doing her whole life, however Jenny would be negligent as a parent if she didn't have someone older to watch over her daughter. Not only that, but she didn't want Matilda to be alone and feel lonely.

"That sounds great!" Matilda chirped happily, placing a forkful of spaghetti in her mouth.

Saturday finally arrived, seeming to have taken forever. Jenny and Matilda walked hand in hand to the public library, enjoying the beautiful sunny day. The library was such a special place for the both of them, though it had been many, many years since Jenny had set foot in the building. For Matilda, it was where she had first discovered books as a means to transport herself away from her lonely, neglected life and into new, exciting worlds. It was the first place an adult had ever shown her any real kindness. Mrs. Phelps had always kept a watchful eye over young Matilda in the days that she sojourned to the library all alone. It was Mrs. Phelps who had helped Matilda obtain her very own library card and and encouraged the little girl to bring home as many books with her as she'd like.

Jenny also had a soft spot in her heart for the older woman. When Jenny was growing up, she always had to come straight home from school in order to clean house and tend to her aunt's dinner. But Jenny had worked up the courage to ask her aunt for permission to walk to the library on Saturdays to work on schoolwork and, miraculously, her aunt had agreed. Jenny delighted in those few hours she had away from home, where she could read and study and… just _breathe_. During her Saturday mornings at the library, the kindly librarian would say hello to Jenny and ask her if she needed help with anything. Jenny was used to adults looking at her with sympathy, as everyone in town knew that she was an orphan. As the years went on and the verbal, emotional, physical, and sexual abuse at home became worse and worse, Jenny retreated more and more into herself, becoming a shadow of the sunny, bubbly child she had once been. Jenny could tell that Mrs. Phelps was concerned. Almost every time she saw Jenny, she would ask her, "Jenny, are you sure everything is alright at home? If there's anything you'd like to talk about, you know I'm always here." One day, Mrs. Phelps had been walking by as Jenny was reaching for a book on a high shelf. As Jenny's sleeve fell down, exposing a distinct, purple handprint on her forearm, Mrs. Phelps had gasped. "Jenny! Oh my God. Who did that to you?" When Jenny wouldn't answer, and could only bring herself to look down at her feet as tears fell down her cheeks. Mrs. Phelps knew.

Mrs. Phelps told Jenny that she was not going to send her home, and that she was going to call the police. "No, Mrs. Phelps! Please!" begged Jenny. The thought of being rescued felt too good to be true. But that's just it- Jenny knew it was too good to be true. Agatha Trunchbull had too many connections in town, even with the police, and Jenny knew that Mrs. Phelps calling the police would just make her situation a million times worse. Jenny had never been so terrified in her life. She knew the woman was just trying to help her, but Jenny had a very, very bad feeling in the pit of her stomach.

The police responded to the library and asked Jenny to make a statement. Jenny denied everything, and told the police officers that she was perfectly safe at home and that it was all a misunderstanding. Mrs. Phelps just looked at the girl sadly. "Jenny, please" she begged. "Show them the bruise on your arm. I know she's hurting you, sweetheart!"

Jenny had been able to make up a story to the officers about a classmate pulling her back from stepping off the sidewalk and into the path of an oncoming car she hadn't seen. The police officers seemed dubious, but accepted her story. Still, they said, they were going to pay a visit to Agatha Trunchbull and speak to her about the allegations that were being made. Jenny quaked with fear the entire time she sat at the library with Mrs. Phelps, wondering what was transpiring between the police and her aunt. The library had closed by that point, and she and Mrs. Phelps were the only two people in the large, cavernous library. Suddenly, a burgundy Buick peeled into the parking lot and came to a screeching halt in front of the door. Jenny's blood turned cold. Her aunt stormed out of the car and into the library.

"YOU," she barked, her eyes colder and more furious than Jenny had ever seen them. "In the car! I'll deal with you later!"

As Jenny sat in the car with her window rolled down, she could only hear snippets of the conversation, her aunt's voice thundering with fury. "Meddling… nose where it doesn't belong… wish you'd never crossed me… you'll be sorry!"

Agatha Trunchbull flew out of the front doors with such force that the wood splintered. Wordlessly, she reversed the giant car and sped out of the parking lot. Jenny shook in terror the entire car ride home. Her aunt's knuckles were white on the steering wheel and her mouth was pressed in a thin angry line. When her aunt pulled into the driveway, she marched to Jenny's side, flung open the door, and grabbed the girl by her hair. As Jenny cried in pain, Agatha Trunchbull dragged her 14 year old niece by her hair into the house, and flung her into the wall with such force that Jenny's elbow made a hole in the drywall. Jenny held up her hands to shield her face. "I'm sorry, Aunt Trunchbull! I didn't say anything, I swear! She accidentally saw the bruise on my arm!"

Her aunt was in a rage, spittle flying from the corners of her mouth. She began savagely tearing the clothes off of Jenny's body. Jenny couldn't stop herself from crying in terror and shame as she heard the sound of ripping fabric and felt the air on her exposed body. When she saw her aunt reach for the broken broom handle, she screamed "No! Please!" But no screams or pleas for mercy were going to change the course of Agatha Trunchbull's sick punishment of her niece. After her aunt had finished raping her, she dragged Jenny by her hair and flung her down the basement stairs. That was where Jenny remained for the next three days. Naked, cold, hungry, and terrified. That day was the last time Jenny had ever set foot in the library again. The last time until she was a 30 year old woman, walking hand in hand with a sweet little brown haired girl.

Jenny's mind snapped back to the present as her cell phone rang from her purse, startling Jenny. She was still getting used to the concept of even having a cell phone. She answered it and was dismayed to hear Hortensia's mother telling Jenny that Hortensia had woken up with a stomach bug that morning and wouldn't be able to watch Matilda that evening. Jenny felt like she could cry. "Of course, Mrs. Spencer, please tell Hortensia Matilda and I hope she gets well soon."

"Mommy? What's wrong with Hortensia?" Matilda asked with concern.

"Oh, just a stomach bug, sweetie, she'll be fine. But I'm afraid she's not going to be able to come over tonight, so I'm going to have to reschedule with John."

"Don't do that mommy, you know I can mind myself!" protested Matilda selflessly.

"Sweetheart, said Jenny ruefully, "I appreciate your selflessness so much, but you're not even seven yet and I'm not leaving you home alone. Let's enjoy our morning at the library and I'll call John when we get home."

Jenny walked through the large front doors of the library with trepidation, still shaking the painful memory that had just flooded her mind. Now, however, as she and Matilda perused the long rows of books, she was feeling distracted by the phone call she had just received. She felt crushed with disappointment that she wouldn't get to see John tonight.

"Jennifer Honey? Is that you?" Jenny heard a familiar voice behind her. Jenny and Matilda both turned around.

"Mrs. Phelps!" exclaimed Matilda, throwing her arms around the older woman. Mrs. Phelps patted Matilda's head affectionately, but her gaze never left Jenny's face. "Jenny," breathed the white haired woman. "It's really you." Within moments, both women were in tears and embracing. "Matilda," said Jenny sniffling. "If you wouldn't mind giving Mrs. Phelps and I a little time to catch up, I see there's a cozy reading chair available in the corner over there."

"Yes Mommy!" exclaimed Matilda happily, bouncing off towards the large overstuffed plaid chair with her armload of books.

"Mommy?" asked Mrs. Phelps in wonderment. "Are you… Matilda Wormwood's?-"

"Yes," said Jenny proudly. "Her parents abandoned her and I'm in the process of finalizing the adoption. We've made a family of our own and we're both so happy."

"Oh how wonderful!" exclaimed Mrs. Phelps, tears in her eyes. After Mrs. Phelps had asked one of the associate librarians to please keep an eye on Matilda, the two women walked out the front doors and sat down at a secluded bench overlooking a beautiful rose garden.

"Mrs. Phelps," began Jenny. "I don't even know where to begin. Thank you for what you tried to do for me all those years ago. I'm sorry I couldn't tell the truth."

"Oh Jenny," said Mrs. Phelps sadly. "Nothing was your fault, please don't apologize for anything. I knew you were being abused and I wish I had fought harder for you. I was the adult and it was my job to protect you and I failed. I tried, but I'm afraid my efforts just made things worse for the both of us."

At Jenny's inquisitive look, Mrs. Phelps gasped. "Surely you knew! Why, the day after I tried to make that report to the police, my house burned to the ground."

Jenny gasped in horror. "No!"

Mrs. Phelps continued. "I lost everything. The fire marshals said it was arson, but they could never prove who had done it. I knew. But I felt like my hands were tied. By then I knew just what Agatha Trunchbull was capable of, and I was terrified that levying an arson allegation against her would just cause her to have more of a vendetta against me. That woman was a wrecking ball, destroying everything and everyone in her path. But I should have fought harder for you. I was weak, Jenny, and I'm sorry. I failed you."

"Oh no, Mrs. Phelps, please don't say that! Oh my God, I had no idea," said Jenny, covering her mouth in shock.

The two women talked for the next two hours. Jenny confessed to Mrs. Phelps, much to the older woman's horror, just how bad the abuse at home had been. As Jenny told her story, she felt a gradual lightening inside her as she unburdened herself of the dark, sordid secrets she had been carrying with her for so many years. Mrs. Phelps sobbed. Jenny did too. The women embraced and cried together. Jenny suddenly felt like a little girl again, longing for the comfort of a caring, older woman to wrap her arms around her and tell her everything would be okay.

As the women regained their emotions, Jenny moved on to a much happier topic, telling Mrs. Phelps about how Agatha Trunchbull had left town, and how Jenny now had her rightful inheritance and her childhood home. She told Mrs. Phelps all about Matilda and the life they were building together. Then she divulged her excitement over meeting John, and her disappointment over having to cancel tonight's date.

"Jenny," said Mrs. Phelps with affectionate sternness. "Don't be silly. You're not canceling your date! I'll watch Matilda!"

Jenny gasped. "Oh Mrs. Phelps, thank you! Are you sure?"

"Jenny, I love children but was never blessed with any of my own. I was lucky to have a nephew and now a grand-niece to spoil rotten, and a job I love that allows me to be around children every day. It keeps me young. And I adore Matilda! I met her when she was 4 and saw how special she was right away. I'd love to spend the evening with her so that you can enjoy your date."

Jenny threw her arms around Mrs. Phelps, overcome with happiness and relief that she wouldn't have to cancel her date tonight. Jenny asked Mrs. Phelps if she could get there by 6:45, as John had told Jenny when they had talked on the phone earlier that week that he'd pick her up at 7. As Jenny went back into the library to round up Matilda and help her check out her books, she smiled, feeling lighter, freer, and happier than she had in her entire life.


	9. Chapter 9

Jenny spent the afternoon in a whirlwind of vacuuming, dusting, and tidying. Jenny generally kept the home very clean and tidy, and fortunately Matilda was a very considerate child who did not make a mess or leave toys strewn about, however Jenny still wanted the house to look perfect for when John picked her up later at 7. Jenny asked Mrs. Phelps to get there at 6:45, which would give her time to show the woman around, tell her about Matilda's bedtime routine, and get everyone settled. When Jenny had mentioned to Mrs. Phelps that she would prepare something for her and Matilda for dinner that Mrs. Phelps could just heat up, Mrs. Phelps once again affectionately scolded Jenny.

"Don't be silly, Jenny! You have enough to think about, preparing for your date. I love to cook and I don't have anyone to cook for anymore. I'll make a lasagna and bring it over with a salad and some garlic bread. Does that sound like something Matilda would like?"

Jenny smiled with relief at one less task she would have to work about, even though she typically enjoyed the labor of love that was preparing wholesome, nutritious meals for Matilda. Jenny knew the kind of processed junk that Matilda had been forced to eat when she was living with the Wormwoods. "That would be wonderful, Mrs. Phelps. If you wouldn't mind making it vegetarian, I know Matilda will love it."

Mrs. Phelps assured her that she would be at Jenny's house with a vegetarian lasagna at 6:45 sharp. That left Jenny time to get in a nice afternoon nap while Matilda read her new books. Jenny had a hard time shutting off her brain as she tried to process everything that had happened that afternoon, and everything she had learned about from her conversation with Mrs. Phelps. Jenny could not believe that Aunt Trunchbull had burned Mrs. Phelps' house to the ground! All because she had tried to help Jenny. Jenny wondered what would have happened if she had told the police officers the truth about what was happening to her at home. Jenny wondered if the officers would have taken her to the hospital for a sexual assault exam. She wondered if she would have been placed in a safe foster home, and if Aunt Trunchbull would have gone to jail. Would someone have adopted her? Jenny knew the odds of being adopted as a teenager were small, so probably not. But Jenny had been a sweet girl. Mousy, quiet, and afraid of her own shadow. But smart and helpful, and sweet, and kind. Maybe someone would have wanted her. Maybe Mrs. Phelps would have wanted her. Mrs. Phelps was the only adult who had ever showed young Jenny true kindness. Jenny remembered being a young girl and going to bed at night, dreaming that she got to live with Mrs. Phelps instead of her Aunt Trunchbull, much like she knew Matilda had longed for a mother- a proper mother- to love her. As the swirling thoughts in Jenny's head began to die down, she dozed off into a peaceful sleep.

When Jenny woke up from her nap, she rummaged through her closet for something to wear before she hopped in the shower and started the process of getting ready. Jenny had already been thinking of a few outfits, but wanted to try them all on and figure out what looked best, and which shoes and jewelry to pair it with. Jenny did not have many shoes or jewelry, but she had bought herself a few basic things recently to mix and match. After much deliberation, and some input from Matilda, Jenny decided on a long navy blue dress with a white floral print, and red flat sandals. After showering and shaving her legs, underarms, and bikini line (not like John would be seeing THAT tonight, but it certainly made Jenny feel sexier and more womanly), Jenny took her time moisturizing her skin drying and curling her hair, and putting on simple, understated makeup. When Jenny stood up to look at the final product in the mirror, she had to admit that she looked beautiful. Jenny felt better and more confident about herself than she had in her entire life. Jenny looked over to her daughter, who was curled up in Jenny's bed reading one of her new books with Liccy doll tucked under her arm, and beamed. All of this, this happy and unexpected trajectory that Jenny's life had taken, had started with this wonderful little girl.

Mrs. Phelps arrived, as promised, promptly at 6:45, fawning over Jenny and complimenting her on how lovely she looked. Jenny gave her a tour of the house and showed her where everything was. "I'd like Matilda to be in bed by 9, with lights out by 9:30. She has a big stack of books she got today, and I'm sure she'd love it if you read with her." Mrs. Phelps' eyes shone with happiness. "I'd love nothing more!"

Jenny continued, "Matilda didn't have a shower this morning, so I'd like her to take a shower before bed. She's very self-sufficient and won't need any help bathing or picking out her jammies. She's probably the easiest child in the world to mind." Mrs. Phelps nodded in agreement. "You sure got lucky, Jenny. You both did. Don't you worry about a thing- we'll hold down the fort here just fine!"

As Jenny was bustling around making final touches straightening things out, the doorbell rang. "He's here!" whispered Jenny to Matilda and Mrs. Phelps, who were both sitting on the living room sofa. She walked over to the door, stopping by the mirror first to double check her appearance and smooth down her hair, and opened it. Jenny smiled broadly, taking in the handsome man standing on her doorstep holding a bouquet of lilies. "Oh John, these are beautiful!" exclaimed Jenny. No one had ever gotten her flowers before. No one, she mentally corrected herself, other than her sweet Matilda, who had picked a handful of wildflowers on Jenny's birthday last month and surprised her with them. "Come on in!"

"John, I'd like you to meet my daughter Matilda, and my dear friend Jean Phelps, who has so graciously agreed to watch Matilda at the last minute tonight. Our regular sitter had to back out at the last minute, and-" Jenny stopped, as she noticed John and Mrs. Phelps staring at each other incredulously.

"Aunt Jean?!" exclaimed John, walking over to Mrs. Phelps and enveloping her in a big bear hug. "What on earth are you doing here?!"

"John, sweetheart!" Mrs. Phelps returned his hug with equal enthusiasm. "I can't believe you're Jenny's date!"

Jenny laughed in amazement. "How on earth is this happening!?"

Mrs. Phelps shook her head in wonderment. "Jenny, you mentioned you were going out with a man named John, and I guess now that I think about it you mentioned that you met him at a lesson Matilda was taking, but honestly John is such a common name and my head was still spinning from seeing you after so many years and everything else we had discussed… I just didn't put two and two together! I can't believe this!"

Mrs. Phelps gave Jenny's hand a squeeze. "Well, I may be biased, but I definitely approve!" she said with a wink.

Jenny blushed, mildly mortified. "Matilda, sweetheart," she said, beckoning Matilda over. "I'd like to introduce you to John, Katie's dad from gymnastics. John, this is my daughter Matilda."

Matilda politely extended her hand and smiled sweetly up at John. "Pleased to meet you, sir."

John grinned as he shook Matilda's hand. "Pleased to meet you too, young lady! I promise I'll take wonderful care of your mother and have her home at a reasonable hour. Does that sound okay with you?" he added with a wink. Matilda giggled.

As much as parenting and dating was new to Jenny, dating as a single parent was a whole new world in and of itself. Jenny had wrestled with the decision of whether or not to introduce Matilda to John, as she generally thought that bringing children into the situation should only occur when the relationship is serious and more established. Jenny figured, however, that Matilda would be seeing John regularly at the gym when he was there to watch Katie, so it would make sense to at least introduce them. Jenny would keep the interactions fairly brief for now, though. If Jenny and John continued to date and things were to progress and become serious, Jenny would gradually bring Matilda into things and let her get to know John at a pace she was comfortable with. Matilda had already experienced enough loss and rejection from adults in her life that Jenny didn't want to make another adult an important figure in Matilda's life until she could be sure that he wasn't going anywhere. It was only fair to Matilda. Jenny wondered how John handled dating as a single father.

"Here, Jenny," said Mrs. Phelps, beckoning Jenny to hand her the bouquet of flowers she was still holding. "I'll have Matilda show me where you keep your vases and I'll put these beautiful flowers in some water for you. You two should probably get along now."

Jenny bent down and hugged and kissed Matilda before heading out the door with John. John held the car door open for Jenny and she slid into the passenger seat. "Jenny," said John, "with all the excitement in there, I didn't get a chance to tell you how beautiful you look tonight."

Jenny felt herself blush. "Thank you, John. You look quite handsome yourself!"

The drive to the restaurant took about ten minutes, and whatever nerves Jenny had initially been feeling quickly melted away as the chatter flowed easily and naturally. Jenny learned that John was an only child and that both of his parents had also passed away, but when he was well into his adult years. She also learned that Mrs. Phelps had been married until her husband's death several years ago, and that she and her husband had tried unsuccessfully for years to have a baby. Jenny found that so sad. Knowing what she knew of Mrs. Phelps, and how nurturing and caring she was, Jenny knew she would have been a wonderful mother.

John pulled up to the restaurant. He had chosen a charming standalone restaurant in an old renovated Victorian house called Angela's. The decor twinkled with Christmas lights and candlelight, and Jenny couldn't believe how romantic and beautiful it was. The aroma of delicious food wafted to Jenny's nose and her stomach growled. John checked in with the hostess and they were promptly seated at a cozy table for two near an old wood-burning fireplace. When Jenny remarked to John that he had chosen an amazing place, he smiled sheepishly and said, "This was always my parents' favorite spot. They dined here every year on their anniversary."

The dinner was filled with lively conversation as Jenny and John learned more about each other. They discussed their careers, their interests, and- of course- their daughters. Jenny learned that John had met Katie's mother in college, and that they had discovered- much to their great surprise- at just 22 years old each, that they were expecting a baby girl. John told Jenny about how his young wife had passed away during childbirth and that John had raised Katie by himself since she was an infant. Jenny couldn't even imagine being left to raise an infant alone, all the while grieving the loss of the person you loved, whom you had planned on raising that baby with and growing old with. And poor Katie, growing up motherless. No doubt John was a loving, doting father, but Jenny knew firsthand how difficult it was to be a young girl without a mother. Especially at Katie's age, on the verge of womanhood. Jenny wondered if John and Katie talked about bras, and periods, and puberty. She could only imagine how awkward that must be for both of them!

After dinner, John asked Jenny if she wanted to take a stroll through the gardens. The restaurant sat on a large property that had paths that meandered through beautifully manicured lawns artfully landscaped with lush, vibrant flora and fauna. As they walked and talked, John reached for Jenny's hand. The warmth of John's tender touch sent a shiver of pleasure down Jenny's spine. When Jenny and John reached a fork in the path, they turned right and came upon a beautiful fountain that was lit up with soft white lights. Jenny took in the pink and orange sunset in the background and gasped. "This is the most beautiful place I've ever seen!"

She turned to John, and next thing she knew his warm, soft lips were on hers. Jenny parted her lips and felt his tongue tentatively caress her own. Jenny felt weak at the knees. She felt a fluttering, tingling feeling in her abdomen, and felt a gush of wetness in her panties. John's arm wrapped around her and his hand landed softly on the small of her back. When this kiss was over, Jenny had to take a second to catch her breath. Her eyes locked with John's and she smiled, blushing. She leaned in and rested her head on John's chest. John wrapped both arms around her and pulled her in close to him. The two of them stood there for several moments until John whispered, "we should probably turn around, it's starting to get dark." Jenny reluctantly agreed. She didn't want this moment to ever end. It was the most magical moment of her life.

When John pulled into Jenny's driveway, he got out and went over to Jenny's side to open the door for her. "I'll walk you to the door," he said, taking her hand and helping her out of the car. "That would be lovely," said Jenny. "Why don't you come in and say goodnight to your aunt?" John agreed, but advised he couldn't stay long because Katie was at a friend's house and he had told the other parents he would pick her up by 10. "She's got practice early in the morning," he explained.

When John and Jenny walked through the door, Jenny saw Mrs. Phelps on the sofa with a sleeping Matilda curled up in her lap. "I didn't want to wake her," whispered Mrs. Phelps. She had her shower and got into her jammies early, and came back downstairs to read stories with me. She was a perfect angel."

Jenny smiled. "I'll take her up to bed, thank you so much for taking such great care of her."

"Do you need help?" asked John.

"I'll carry her," replied Jenny, "but I might need your help pulling her bed covers back for me."

"I think I can manage that," said John, smiling.

John watched as Jenny tenderly picked Matilda up and rested the sleeping child's head on her shoulder. Jenny inhaled the sweet smell of shampoo and soap, and felt her heart swell. Matilda stirred, her eyes bleary with sleep. "Mommy?" she asked.

"Shh," said Jenny. "Go back to sleep, sweetheart."

Matilda sighed and melted into Jenny's arms. John followed Jenny up the stairs and into Matilda's bedroom. He pulled her sheets and blanket back and then stepped aside as Jenny gently laid Matilda down and tucked her in. "Goodnight, Matilda, I love you," she whispered.

"Love you," mumbled Matilda. The little girl sighed contentedly, and with that she fell back asleep instantaneously.

John and Jenny crept out of Matilda's room and Jenny pulled the door quietly shut behind them, making sure to leave it cracked an inch.

Back downstairs, he turned to Jenny and said with admiration in his eyes, "You're a wonderful mother. And she's such a sweet little girl."

Jenny blushed. "Thank you. She's my everything."

Jenny, John, and Mrs. Phelps chatted for a few minutes before John apologized but said he really must get going to pick up Katie. He bent down and gave Jenny a peck on the cheek (Jenny was sure it would have been a more romantic kiss if Mrs. Phelps hadn't been standing ten feet away) and then gave his aunt a goodbye hug. Jenny walked him to the door. "I'll call you tomorrow," he whispered to Jenny, smiling. Jenny smiled back. She knew he would.

After the door shut, Mrs. Phelps squealed. Jenny turned around, surprised. "He is so smitten with you, Jenny! I can tell!" exclaimed the older woman excitedly. "I haven't seen him like this since, well… since he met Katie's mom."

After she had seen Mrs. Phelps out and thanked her profusely for coming through for her tonight, Jenny locked the door, turned of all the lights, and went up to bed. After brushing her teeth and washing her face, she undressed and slipped a soft pink nightgown over her naked skin. As Jenny melted into her bed, she replayed the kiss over in her mind. Just thinking about it, about his lips, and his tongue, and his hands, Jenny once again felt a gush of wetness between her legs. Jenny reached down to touch herself and was shocked at how much wetness there was between her legs. She was drenched. As she thought of John, she began stroking herself, exploring all the crevices and folds. As her fingers found her clitoris, she gasped. She massaged it ever so gently, playing with different speeds and pressure. As the tingly, pleasureful sensation in her abdomen continued to build, Jenny stifled a moan. Finally, Jenny felt an intense burst of pleasure as she surrendered to the powerful orgasm. Jenny's nightgown underneath her was drenched. So were her thighs. She knew she should get up and clean herself up and change nightgowns, but all she could think about what it would feel like if John was naked in bed beside her and they had just finished making love. As Jenny lay there, thinking of John, waiting for her racing heart to slow back down to an even pace, she replayed the night over in her head, and branched off into fantasizing about what it would be like to make love to him, and to feel the weight of his body on top of her and his hard penis slide inside her soaking wet hole. Finally, tiredness overtook Jenny and she drifted off into a blissful, dreamless sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

As the weeks went by, Jenny and John saw more and more of each other. Of course they always sat together at the gym while their girls were in training, enjoying the time together but being mindful to not show any PDA. But in the evenings, John took Jenny on the most amazing dates. They went to an outdoor jazz concert, a riverboat cruise downtown, and even to the theater. Jenny felt like she was living in a dream. She couldn't even believe that this was her own life, and that this handsome, kind, attentive man actually wanted to be with her. Fortunately, Mrs. Phelps was more than happy to mind Matilda any time Jenny and John had plans. Jenny felt so thankful towards Mrs. Phelps for her selflessness in caring for Matilda that it was hard to put into words. More than that, however, the bond that she and Mrs. Phelps had built over the past several weeks had filled Jenny with a sense of warmth and comfort that she hadn't felt since, well… probably since her father had been alive. Jenny hadn't known the love and care of another person since she was five years old and her father died. Then, when she was 30, the most wonderful little girl in the world had come along and filled Jenny with a sense of love and purpose and belonging that she'd never even imagined possible. Still, though, there was something missing. Jenny hadn't quite realized what it was until the past several weeks when she and Mrs. Phelps had rekindled their friendship. What Jenny had been missing, all these years, was the love and guidance and support of a caring adult. Jenny and Mrs. Phelps had begun to talk on the phone almost nightly. After dinner, Matilda would help Jenny clear the table, and then Jenny would shoo her off to her room to go play. Jenny appreciated Matilda's willingness to pitch in and help with chores, however Jenny wanted nothing more than to see Matilda play and enjoy being a child. While Jenny washed the dishes, she would call Mrs. Phelps and put the phone on speaker. The two women would discuss their days, and then branch off into another topic, and another, until before Jenny knew it a half hour had gone by and she had no idea how they had gotten to their current topic of conversation. The conversation flowed so freely and easily between the two women. It almost felt, Jenny realized, like talking to a mother.

Fortunately for John, Katie was at the age where she was okay to stay by herself at home on the nights that he and Jenny had a date. Jenny and John had both discussed that maybe at some point, Mrs. Phelps could mind Matilda and Katie together while the girls' parents were out, however they were still wary of moving things too fast. John hadn't seriously dated anyone in years, and Katie was so used to her routine with just her and her dad that John wanted to be mindful of introducing change. Then there was Matilda, whose whole life had just been turned upside down not too long ago and was just getting adjusted to everything- a new mom, a new house, a new life. Jenny knew that Katie and Matilda were aware of their parents' relationship and who each other was, however they hadn't had any direct interaction yet.

One day, about a month into their relationship, Jenny and John were sitting in the observation room at the gym, watching their girls. Katie was working with her choreographer on the floor, practicing the intricate dance moves in between her tumbling passes. Matilda was over on the balance beam with her class. Jenny watched as, one by one, the little girls climbed up on the beam and walked across with their arms held out and their toes gracefully pointed. When it was Matilda's turn, Jenny leaned forward, elbows on her knees. Matilda began her walk across the beam with deliberation and concentration. Jenny was impressed by her little daughter's perfect precision and toe point, and smiled with pride. Matilda, eager to make sure Jenny was watching, looked up at the parents' waiting room and caught Jenny's eye. Jenny and Matilda exchanged smiles, and Jenny gave her daughter a slight wave. Then, suddenly, Matilda's foot slipped and she came crashing down onto the beam, landing hard on her pubic bone with one leg on each side of the beam. Jenny's hand flew to her mouth and she gasped, at the same time that Matilda let out a scream.

"Oh my God!" Jenny cried as she sprung out of her seat. As Jenny started to move towards the door, John put a calming hand on her shoulder. "Jenny," he said gently. "Parents aren't allowed on the floor. I know it's hard to see your kid fall, but don't worry. The coaches can handle it."

Jenny, heart racing, sat back down as John's hand continued to rest on her shoulder. She found his touch comforting. Jenny looked down and saw that, indeed, the instructor had caught Matilda and helped to ease her off the balance beam. The instructor bent down to Matilda's level and was comforting the little girl, who Jenny could tell was trying not to cry.

Suddenly, Jenny saw Katie race across the gym to Matilda's side. Katie knelt down and put a comforting arm around Matilda's shoulders. As Matilda's little shoulders heaved, trying so hard to suppress her tears, Jenny saw Katie lean in and whisper something into Matilda's ear. Miraculously, Jenny saw Matilda crack a small smile. Jenny saw Katie say something to Matilda's instructor, and then take Matilda by the hand and lead her into the locker room. Jenny and John looked at each other and smiled. "What an amazing girl, your Katie is," Jenny murmured, giving John's hand a squeeze. "Splitting the beam is something that happens to every gymnast at some point," John explained. Painful and embarrassing, yes, but almost a rite of passage. Katie has been there and I'm sure she knows exactly what to say to Matilda.

About ten minutes later, Matilda and Katie emerged from the locker room. Katie gave Matilda's hand a quick squeeze, as she and Matilda parted ways. Matilda went bravely back to her class, which had now rotated to the floor exercise, while Katie jogged over to the bars. Jenny could tell by the way that Matilda was moving that she was in slight discomfort, however the little girl put on a brave face and pushed through the remainder of the lesson.

At the end of Matilda's lesson, Jenny squeezed John's hand as he promised to call her later. While Matilda was done for the evening, Katie still had a few hours to go. Jenny met Matilda down in the lobby and wrapped her daughter into a big hug. "Are you okay, sweetheart?" That fall on the beam looked painful." Jenny smoothed Matilda's hair and gave her a kiss on the forehead.

"I'm okay," said Matilda glumly. "Just embarrassed. I wasn't supposed to lose concentration like that. It's my fault. But Katie talked to me and made me feel better. She said she's split the beam before too."

"Oh Matilda," said Jenny with understanding. "I know you're supposed to be concentrating, but it's a very normal thing for a little girl to want to look up and see if her mom is watching. Don't beat yourself up, honey." Jenny took Matilda's hand as they walked out of the gym. "I saw Katie take you into the locker room. That was very sweet of her. What do you think of Katie?"

"Katie is really cool!" exclaimed Matilda. Jenny smiled. She knew that it was only a matter of time before she and John merged their separate lives together and brought the girls into things. She was pleased to hear that Matilda was already so fond of John's daughter. It hadn't escaped Jenny's mind that as her emotional bond with John had continued to grow over the past month or so, so had their physical chemistry. Thus far, John had been a perfect gentleman and had only kissed Jenny on their dates, never pushing for more. Jenny, however, could feel the sexual tension building between the two of them. On their last date, just a few nights ago, John's kiss had seemed more urgent. As they kissed, Jenny had felt his hand slide down her back and cup her bottom. The unexpected touch made Jenny feel a sudden gush in her panties and a tingling sensation in her abdomen that made her gasp.

Jenny was acutely aware of the fact that she was a 30 year old virgin while John clearly wasn't one. It horrified her to think that maybe they would have sex and she wouldn't know what to do, and that John would be disappointed, or turned off. Every night she lay in bed, thinking of making love to John while feeling the throbbing of desire between her legs. She knew that she couldn't her her fear stop her, but she was scared to even bring up the topic with John. If he knew she was a virgin, would he want to run for the hills?

When Jenny and Matilda got home, Jenny turned to Matilda and said, "Sweetheart, are you sure you're not hurt? That fall looked really hard."

Matilda blushed. "It hurts between my legs, but Katie said that will go away."

Jenny sighed. "Honey, I don't want to embarrass you, but I need to see your injury. Can I step into the bathroom with you? How about if I draw you a nice bubble bath for you to soak in while I prepare dinner?"

Matilda nodded, and she and Jenny made their way upstairs. Jenny turned on the hot water, checking the temperature and then adding a generous amount of lavender bubble bath. Matilda stripped out of her t-shirt, shorts, and leotard. Jenny knelt down so that she could see Matilda's injury better. Sure enough, Matilda's vagina had a bruise starting to form. Other than a bruise, though, it didn't appear that Matilda had any serious injury from her fall on the balance beam.

Jenny finished drawing the bath, and Matilda climbed in. "I'll be preparing dinner, sweetie," said Jenny. "Just holler if you need me, okay?" Matilda nodded and smiled, relaxing into the warm, soapy water.

During dinner that evening, Jenny tried to steer the conversation away from gymnastics, hoping to distract Matilda from her fall. She knew the little girl was embarrassed that she had fallen in front of her class and that she had a bruise on her vagina. Jenny noticed that Matilda seemed a bit more fidgety than usual, but didn't really think much of it. She and Matilda went through their bedtime routine, and after Matilda had brushed her teeth and used the bathroom, Jenny tucked her in. They read a few chapters of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, until Jenny noticed Matilda's eyelids starting to droop. Jenny quietly closed the book, gave Matilda a kiss on the forehead, and turned off the light. "Goodnight, sweetheart. I love you," she whispered, before tiptoeing out of Matilda's room.

Jenny was awoken in the middle of the night by Matilda, standing at her bedside and shaking her arm. "Mommy?" said Matilda, her voice quavering.

Jenny sat up in bed. "Matilda! What's wrong, sweetie? Are you okay?"

Matilda sighed. "I wet the bed," she said, eyes downcast. "Last time you told me to come get you if it happened again."

"Yes, yes, of course!" said Jenny as she got out of bed and wrapped Matilda into her arms. She could see that Matilda was wearing a different nightgown than the one she had been wearing when Jenny tucked her in, and presumed that the little girl had already cleaned herself up and changed. "Let's go get you some fresh sheets, darling," said Jenny as she took Matilda's hand and led her down the hall. Jenny grabbed a fresh set of sheets from the hallway closet and proceeded into Matilda's room.

"Matilda," said Jenny, kneeling down and looking the little girl in the eyes. "Is there something you're worried or stressed about?"

"No," Matilda replied, hesitantly.

Jenny could tell that there was something bothering the little girl. "Sweetheart, what's going on? Did you empty out your bladder before bed like we talked about?"

"No," said Matilda, looking down at her feet.

"Why, sweetheart?" asked Jenny, confused.

Matilda sighed. "I tried, but…" she trailed off.

"But what?" asked Jenny with concern.

"I couldn't go," explained Matilda. "It hurts."

"What do you mean, it hurts?" asked Jenny, alarmed. "Your vagina hurts? You mean from falling in gymnastics?"

"No," said Matilda. "I mean, yes it hurts down there. But I don't think it's from gymnastics. It burns and it's itchy."

Jenny, alarmed, lifted Matilda up onto the bed. "Sweetheart, I need to take a look, ok?"

Matilda nodded, pink cheeked. Jenny lifted up Matilda's nightgown and gasped. Poor Matilda's vulva was red and swollen and very irritated looking.

"Oh, Matilda," said Jenny, pulling the little girl into a hug. "I'm going to call the doctor first thing in the morning. How about you sleep in my bed tonight?" Matilda nodded. Jenny picked her up and carried her into her room, just like she had done all those weeks ago. Jenny tucked Matilda in and set her alarm clock for 7:59AM, so that she could be ready to call the pediatrician's office at 8AM sharp when they opened.


End file.
